OHIO — Up to 20,000 fish have died after a fertilizer spill in northern Ohio, our CBS affiliate WTOL-11 reported.
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The fertilizer spill happened in Huston Creek, which is near Napoleon, and spread to the Maumee River after heavy rainfall.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources estimates between 18,000 and 20,000 fish died along the 11-mile stretch of the river.
After completing an assessment on the impacted area, ODNR officials said the fish ranged from 3-inch sunfish to 40-inch grass carp.
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WTOL-11 reported that this follows a spill of 28% UAN, a liquid fertilizer, on July 3.
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency said the responsible party hired an environmental contractor to install three check dams in the creek to contain the spill.
But heavy rain on Saturday morning caused those dams to fail.
This led to rainwater and fertilizer flowing into the Maumee River.
Acting Napoleon City Manager Chad Lulfs said the city was told fertilizer reached the river on Saturday, according to WTOL-11.
“It inundated the creek and the earthen dams that were present, washed out, and it was released into the river,” Lulfs said. “Saturday, I was notified by our fire chief of the incident and that we had a large number of fish that had been killed in the river.”
City, Ohio EPA, and the local Emergency Management Agency’s tests found ammonia levels well below those considered hazardous to people.
“We took random grab samples. We tested those samples. The threshold that can be an irritant to human skin, an irritant to eyes, is 50 parts per million,” Lulfs said. “Of all the samples we took, the highest test we got was 2.8 parts per million, so it didn’t represent an issue for those out on the river for recreational purposes.”
Lulfs said the fish did not die because they were poisoned.
“The ammonia reacting in the water essentially uses up all the dissolved oxygen in the water, so the fish are essentially suffocating,” Lulfs said. “It’s not poisoning them. They just can’t breathe in the water due to the ammonia.”
The environmental contractor has since reinstalled containment points and restarted aeration in the creek to capture any remaining fertilizer, according to the Ohio EPA.
Cleanup efforts remain underway, but heavy rainfall helped dilute the ammonia in the water.
City officials said the city’s drinking water was not affected by the spill.
The Ohio EPA said it will continue to oversee the response and provide guidance during the cleanup process.
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