Monday, May 16, 2022

Key River Test Results Sent to TDEC

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

Long awaited bioassessment test results to measure the impact of an industrial operation on the Nolichucky River have been submitted by US Nitrogen LLC to the state Department of Enviroment and Conservation.
The 41-page report, which was actually due months ago, concludes that at least by some measures, the impact on the Nollichucky River from the use of its water by US Nitrogen has been negligbile.
The test was required because, in an unusual arrangement, US Nitrogen is allowed to use thousands of gallons per day of river water at no cost for use in the production of ammonium nitrate, the company''s primary product.
It was Park Overall, a local environmental activist, who reminded state officials the tests were long overdue. She was not available for comment Monday. The preface to the report discloses that some adjustments had to be made to the standard test format due to the actual features of the Nolichucky. The report states that similar adjustments were made in a 2016 test.
"There is no riffle habitat immediately downstream of the (U.S, Nitrogen's) discharge.
US Nitrogen takes water from the Nolichucky, uses most of that water in its production, then discharges the excess back in to the river.
The new tests were conducted on Sept. 13, 2021. TDEC officials were on hand to observe certain elements of the testing and parallel tests were performed on Sept. 15 on the Powell River in Cocke County for comparison purpose.
The test showed water was flowing in the Nolichucky during testing at the rate of 1,080 gallons per minute. Samples collected were hand delivered to Pennington and Associates for testing.
"Samples from the Nolichucky similar to Powell downstream had a slightly lower level of dissolved oxygen (and) a slightly higher level of conductivity," the report states. Mace invertebrates, it continues, were at a higher level than those in the Nolichucky.
The report states that the Nolichucky River may be impacted by upstream factors before it reaches the US Nitrogen discharge point. A review of metric scores showed the Powell River had a 26 score, while the Nolichucky showed a score of 14 upstream of the intake point compared to 16 at the discharge point. Both the intake and discharge points are near the the 21-mile point on the river.
The report concludes that US Nitrogen's effluent may not be causing an impact to the bethe macroinvertebrate community in the river.
The report also notes that while photos were taken of the testing point on the Powell River, photos of the Nolichucky were not available due to technical issues.
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