By: Harrison Metzger
MILLS RIVER -- The extent of a July fish kill in the river that
provides drinking water for most residents may never be known because
state officials didn't count the dead fish.
Meanwhile, a farmer growing tomatoes in a field where state
officials found a fungicide in a rain puddle said he doesn't think his
operation caused the contamination.
Mills River residents on
July 27 reported dead trout and other fish floating belly up in the
river, including 30 to 50 in the section below the N.C. 280 bridge.
Government
fish and wildlife and water quality officials responded and followed
the trail of dead fish upstream several miles onto the river's South
Fork.
The N.C. Division of Water Quality took water samples that
day from the river and a puddle in a tomato field at the corner of
South Mills River Road and Old Homeplace Lane.
Test results
found the water from the field contained 308 micrograms per liter
(parts per million) of chlorothalonil. The fungicide, used to control
diseases that threaten vegetables, fruits and other crops, is highly
toxic to fish. Levels of .25 micrograms per liter can kill rainbow
trout.
The Mills River is a drinking water source for 27,000
customers of the Hendersonville water system, more than 62,000
residents in Henderson County. The fungicide also was found in the
city's treated water, but at levels too low to pose a health risk,
state officials said.
Tests of treated water from the city water plant found
chlorothalonil at 2.8 parts per billion. That is below the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency's standard for infants and would not
pose a health risk even for people drinking the water daily for years,
state health officials said.
Dead fish not counted
The Division of
Water Quality is responsible for determining the cause of chemical
spills and fish kills. The state can issue fines and charge those
responsible for a chemical spills the cost to replace fish killed.
But Roy Davis, the state water quality engineer who
investigated the Mills River fish kill, said biologists with the N.C.
Wildlife Resources did not count the dead fish.
"That was an error on my part," he said. "So if there is a
civil penalty now, it would be for rendering the South Mills River
unsuitable for fish habitat."
Davis said he doubted his Asheville office would levy the
maximum fine of $25,000 per day for the Mills River fish kill, even if
determines who is responsible.
"A $25,000 penalty is reserved for very, very serious violations. This doesn't fall into this category," he said.
The fungicide is the only contaminant found in the water,
leading state officials to believe it killed the fish. But the division
has not yet determined who or what was responsible.
State officials are awaiting a final report from a state lab
before deciding if there is enough evidence to pinpoint the cause of
the fish kill, Davis said.
"We need time to digest what we know and what we have learned," he said.
He said he did not expect the findings any time soon.
Farmer speaks
The tomato field where the fungicide was found in a rain puddle
is leased by farmer Baltazar "Domingo" Perez and his father, Davis
said.
"It rained approximately a day and a half after Mr. Perez says
he applied the fungicide," Davis said. "He said he applied it on a
Tuesday and it was Wednesday night and Thursday morning we had rain."
Davis said he did not know whether the fungicide, if properly applied, could result in a fish kill under those conditions.
The spot where the farmer mixed the fungicide in a spray tanker
is immediately adjacent to the stream that runs alongside the field and
into the river. But state officials found no evidence of a spill into
the creek. Davis said he did not test a hose used to draw water from
the creek to see whether chemicals could have been siphoned back into
the stream.
"I would think that is unlikely," he said.
Perez, contacted Tuesday, declined comment except to say that
other Mills River farmers use the same fungicide. He said he does not
believe his operation caused the fish kill.
"I know everything I did was correct," he said.
State officials are not sure how far downstream in the river
the chemical killed fish. Dead fish were found five miles downstream
below the N.C. 280 bridge, but could have washed down from above, Davis
said.
Deanna McCraw lives next to the field where Perez grows crops
on South Mills River Road. She said she and her family have been buying
tomatoes from him for about three years.
As volunteers for the Environmental and Conservation
Organization's VWIN water quality monitoring program, McCraw and her
family have documented increased sediment in streams from a development
on the mountain behind their home. She described Perez as a
conscientious farmer.
"I can say in this guy's defense he has been a good neighbor,"
she said. "Some people trash the area. This guy, even after the crops
are done, he comes out and cleans up the trash, lunch trash (from
workers). That is honorable because some people who work fields don't
do that."
