Dec. 8 -- JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is holding a public meeting at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Dec. 13, in Jefferson City, to "continue discussing permitting land application of industrial wastewater and wastewater treatment residuals."
Attendance can be in person, by conference call and by Webex, a video meeting service.
Companies such as Denali Water Solutions, based in Arkansas, have drawn criticism in recent years from residents who live near the storage lagoons and in areas where the waste is spread. They worry that the practice threatens their health, property values and water quality, and say that it creates an odor that makes it uninviting for them to live and work outdoors.
"We will be discussing the draft rule language, the draft industrial nutrient management technical standard, the land application management plans and the regulatory impact report," Peters said.
Companies that store and spread the waste argue that it is fertilizer and that they are recycling different organic waste streams that reduce dependence on landfills, reduce carbon and methane impact on the environment, reduce water consumption, and provide farmers an alternative to more expensive chemical fertilizers.
"The Department of Natural Resources has to do what's called a Regulatory Impact Report prior to doing a rule-making," Peters said.
Heather Peters noted this meeting is scheduled for three hours because previous meetings couldn't cover all information within two hours.