The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is urging state officials to take more action on nitrate pollution in Eastern Oregon鈥檚 Lower Umatilla Basin.
A July 29 letter from the EPA to the Oregon Health Authority, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and the Oregon Department of Agriculture praised the state for some of the measures it鈥檚 taken to provide clean water to residents in Morrow County, but said that鈥檚 not enough.
鈥淓PA expects the state to hold nitrate sources accountable by requiring them to assume some of the responsibilities set forth above and, more importantly, to change their practices to reduce the amount of nitrate they discharge to groundwater,鈥� wrote Edward Kowalski, director of EPA Region 10鈥瞫 enforcement and compliance division.
Nitrates are a chemical commonly found in fertilizer. In excess amounts, they can affect the health of people鈥檚 lungs, thyroid and bladder.
, but a recent round of water testing of private wells in the Boardman area found that many residents had unsafe levels of nitrates in their drinking water.
Kowalski highlighted a Lower Umatilla Basin work plan completed by the three agencies, the plan including initiatives for nitrate contamination education, free drinking water tests and alternative water sources where necessary. He also gave plaudits to the agencies鈥� plans to seek funding for these initiatives at the Oregon Legislature Emergency Board鈥檚 September meeting and the long session in 2023.
But Kowlaski wrote that the state could no longer rely on voluntary practices and had to address the source of nitrates. According to a 1997 study conducted by the state Department of Environmental Quality, agricultural and industrial operations were among the top sources of the chemical.
Kowalski encouraged the state to regulate industrial discharge and animal feeding operations through a permitting system established by the EPA鈥檚 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
Before ending the letter, Kowalski left the door open to the EPA taking emergency action in Eastern Oregon.
鈥淭he Agency will continue to closely monitor the situation and continues to assess options for additional Agency intervention if necessary,鈥� he wrote.
Responding to requests for comment, representatives from the Oregon departments of environmental quality and agriculture explained the enforcement work they were already doing while also emphasizing the barriers to expanding it further.
DEQ鈥檚 Laura Gleim reiterated the agency鈥檚 position on enforcement: It would take action where it could, but its reach was limited.
鈥淒EQ is using what regulatory authority we have to reduce nitrate contamination from specific sources, including enacting stricter limits on food processing wastewater facilities,鈥� she wrote in an email. 鈥淗owever, DEQ only has regulatory authority over a small portion of the identified sources of nitrate in this area.鈥�
Liz Beeles of ODA said her agency would continue to monitor and regulate groundwater pollution from animal feeding operations and certain irrigated agriculture. But the latter could be difficult to track.
鈥淭he current monitoring framework makes it difficult to identify specific irrigated agricultural nutrient sources and link them to water quality outcomes in groundwater,鈥� she wrote.
Beeles added that the department was looking into ways to 鈥渟upport or enhance鈥� voluntary measures proposed in a 2020 plan.
Instead of focusing on enforcement, Oregon Health Authority spokesperson Jonathan Modie detailed his agency鈥檚 legislative efforts.
In an email, Modie wrote that OHA will seek money from the Emergency Board for well treatment systems and replacement water filters for affected households through June 2023.
During the Legislature鈥檚 long session next year, OHA plans to ask for money to pay for a new domestic well safety coordinator position, among other things.
Morrow County emergency manager Paul Gray, who has helped coordinate the county鈥檚 emergency response to the nitrate pollution, did not return requests for comment.
Scott Lukas, the committee chair of the Lower Umatilla Basin Groundwater Management Area, was traveling and said he would not be able to comment until Monday.
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