No worries over ammonia in wastewater

Spring Valley, Ill. — The city council has been advised not to be overly concerned about higher ammonia levels in Spring Valley’s treated wastewater. But, cautioned City Engineer Jack Kusek, the city’s not out of the woods yet. The good news, reported Kusek, is that none of the problems have been noted in the Illinois River near Spring Valley. “However, the city will have to do studies to prove its waste water will not harm the river,” he cautioned, noting that ammonia is basically a fertilizer that can make plant growth that shouldn’t be there, and can also make the water less conducive for fish life. The terms of the city’s new National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit require keeping ammonia levels between 3.0 to 3.8 ppm, something the city has never previously needed to monitor. After discussions with representatives of Illinois EPA in Rockford, Kusek said the city needs to conduct studies over a period of months to receive an exception for the permit. Chuck Corley, state manager for water pollution control field operations, told Green Markets that EPA monitors ammonia levels in the river throughout the year on a monthly to quarterly basis. According to Corley, the ammonia levels are relatively low. “Most of the samples include ammonia nitrogen; however, the concentrations are low in comparison to other types of runoff.”