DNREC says Mountaire cleanup complete
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control says Mountaire’s Millsboro chicken processing plant has completed cleanup of an accidental release of partially treated wastewater.
DNREC staff were onsite at Mountaire Feb. 15 to verify the cleanup efforts, which began shortly after the spill was reported by Mountaire Feb. 13. DNREC officials said Mountaire has conducted continuous, 24-hour pumping of discharged wastewater back into the plant’s wastewater treatment system for retreatment. Other cleanup efforts included scraping soils in the area where the release occurred to remove any potential solids, spreading lime on the ground surface once solids were removed, repairing the mechanical component of the wastewater system that malfunctioned leading to the release and a complete inspection of the system.
DNREC officials say they are requiring Mountaire to conduct enhanced groundwater monitoring to determine any impacts to the groundwater.
Ryan Mavity covers Milton and the court system. He is married to Rachel Swick Mavity and has two kids, Alex and Jane. Ryan started with the Cape Gazette all the way back in February 2007, previously covering the City of Rehoboth Beach. A native of Easton, Md. and graduate of Towson University, Ryan enjoys watching the Baltimore Ravens, Washington Capitals and Baltimore Orioles in his spare time.
