THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, December 18, 1995 TAG: 9512180027
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: RALEIGH LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
Now that the state has concluded that dangerous nitrates from leaking hog farm refuse can end up in drinking water sources, the next question is how widespread the problem could become.
Environmental officials have discovered at least 13 polluted wells in the past eight weeks in which animal waste is known or suspected to be the source, The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Sunday.
Although farms built since 1993 are required to have clay liners for their waste lagoons, hundreds of other pits have poorly insulated liners or none at all.
``The initial message that we're getting is that this is not a fluke,'' said Dr. Ken Rudo, a state toxicologist who investigated several of the contaminated sites. ``It is indeed possible for a hog farm to contaminate someone's well.''
Hog waste has been determined to be the source of nitrate pollution at three wells in the Robeson County town of Shannon. And officials said they have eliminated virtually all other plausible explanations for a cluster of seven highly contaminated wells in nearby Parkton. Families have been told to drink bottled water.
Health workers also are starting to explore the cause of nitrate problems in other wells near livestock operations outside Lumberton and the village of Keener in Sampson County.
Kathy Parker's family in Johnston County learned last week that an abandoned well it owns contains dangerously high levels of nitrates. The byproduct of animal and human waste has been linked to ``blue-baby syndrome,'' a potentially fatal condition that affects fetuses and infants under 6 months.
``The part that frightened me was when they asked if I had any young children at home,'' said Parker, a mother of two, whose home has sat behind a hog farm for 10 years.
The Parkers took advantage this month of a state offer to test the well water for nitrates of anyone living next to a hog farm at no charge.
The nitrates ``definitely came from the farm,'' said Jim Greer, a hydrogeological technician for the state. ``That well is less than a stone's throw from the lagoon.''
Seven wells near the village of Parkton have been found to have high nitrate levels - one of them five times the state standard of 10 parts per million. A week's worth of tests to determine whether the source of the contaminants is a nearby swine operation are inconclusive.
``We'll be back at the site for new tests next week,'' said Tommy Stevens, who's with the state Division of Environmental Management in Fayetteville.
The future could mean more sightings of nitrates.
A North Carolina State University study of 11 hog lagoons built before stricter waste rules took effect showed that more than half were leaking pollutants into the groundwater. Other studies have shown evidence of widespread groundwater contamination under fields where wastes were sprayed.
Rodney Huffman, one of the authors of the N.C. State study, told the state's Blue Ribbon Commission on Agricultural Waste earlier this month that newer lagoon designs also could fail if the clay liners are not carefully installed and compacted.
``You're sitting there waiting for something to happen, and it may be two or three years before you even know that there's a problem,'' Huffman said. ``By that time, the farm is running full-bore.'' by CNB