Million gallon coal ash spill in Minnesota raises concerns about impacts on water and wildlife

Coal ash wastewater spills out over land, with some reaching Blackwater Lake, after a a break in an underground pipe was discovered at a Minnesota Power plant. One million gallons of coal ash-tainted water, which was being siphoned off the top of an old coal ash pond for re-use at the Boswell Energy Center in Cohasset, Minn., escaped the break, Josh Skelton, Minnesota Power’s chief operating officer, said.

The leak was discovered by the Duluth-based electric utility company when it found standing water that bubbled to the surface near the break site.

“Spills do occur in our processes,” Skelton said. “We work hard to mitigate impacts, whether they’re a million gallons or less than one gallon.”

The leak was contained and the company said that “the million gallons is more than we’ve had [in past events],” but it is committed to continuing to monitor for potential impacts to water and wildlife. Both the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) were notified of the leak.

Blackwater Lake is a 674-acre reservoir on the Mississippi River, according to the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and was the site where the pipeline rises above ground before it crosses the lake on a trestle.

StarTribune reported that “Minnesota Power stopped putting ash in the pond in 2015, it was part of scrubbing technology to capture and store the leftovers from combusting coal.” Minnesota Power currently used the lake to draw water to cool its plant and release heated water.

The DNR said the lake attracts fish and anglers and therefore, it will continue to mitigate environmental damage from the spill.

While it’s still unclear how far the coal ash spread, Steve Robertson, assistant manager of the Minnesota Department of Health’s Drinking Water Protection section, said “the risk is low” of contaminated drinking water because the town does not draw it from the Mississippi River.

“Given the nature of the aquifer, the effects of the spill, if any, would be on the order of a year or more away,” Robertson said. “We will assess any other potential risks to public water systems in the area as we receive more information about the spill.”