Worry for Lake Winnipeg grows after ND dairy farm approved

North Dakota’s approval of a permit for a massive dairy farming operation near the Red River is ringing alarm bells for environmental groups in Manitoba who say it poses a threat to an already-beleaguered Lake Winnipeg.

Their primary concern is manure runoff making its way into the Red River, which flows northward from North Dakota towards Winnipeg, before emptying into Lake Winnipeg. There, the phosphorus-rich waste product would contribute to further growth of the blue-green algae that’s already choking oxygen out of the lake — affecting fish stocks, water quality and Manitobans’ enjoyment of its beaches.

Herberg Dairy, which is set to house 25,000 cows, received approval from North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality on Sept. 24. That farm would be in addition to a second dairy, also located within 2.5-kilometres of the Red River, that is set to hold 12,500 cows. The permit for that dairy was approved earlier this year.

Taken together, the two operations would produce a volume of animal waste similar to a city of 1.5 million people, said James Beddome, executive director of the Manitoba Eco-Network.

“If it floods — and it floods in North Dakota just like it does in Winnipeg, we’re in the same Red River floodplain — so if the land floods, or if you get a heavy rain, then the nutrients run off the land and they run to the waterway,” said Beddome, noting that in addition to phosphorus, nitrogen and E. coli are also concerns.

Beddome said unlike sewage, the manure would not be treated. Instead, it would be stored in enormous liquid manure slurry pits, before being used as agricultural fertilizer. The concern is, Beddome said, given the high costs to transport it, the manure will likely be overapplied — and in areas not far from the river.

Beddome’s Manitoba Eco-Network and two other organizations — Save Lake Winnipeg Project and Animal Justice — have called on the Canadian government to refer the issue to the International Joint Commission, which deals with matters surrounding waters that cross U.S.-Canada borders.

Lake Winnipeg is a cultural, ecological, economic and recreational life force for the province. It is a source of connection and sustenance for the many First Nations along its shores, home of a vast number of fish and birds and its shores are a place Manitobans gather every summer.

For its part, the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality said the permit will require a clay liner for manure storage areas and that the department is still assessing a floodplain analysis.

Vicki Burns, director of the Save Lake Winnipeg Project, said it’s impossible the operation won’t have an effect on downstream water quality.

“When you apply manure to land, it’s a good fertilizer, but if there’s more nutrients in that manure than what the crop can use, then those nutrients are sitting in the soil, and in the spring, when the snow melts, or in any kind of flood situation, or significant rain, they run off off the land,” she said.

“You can’t say that’s not going to create pollution — well you can say it, but to be able to actually prove that’s true is completely off, as far as many of us are concerned.”

Kaitlyn Mitchell, director of legal advocacy for Animal Justice, said these dairies are not the “pastoral, idyllic” farms that many people might imagine, but rather 25,000 cows “confined in highly stressful, crowded and unnatural conditions.”

In an era of “elbows up” emphasis on Canada’s sovereignty in the face of U.S. threats, Mitchell added, “what we really need is politicians to bring that energy to this issue and fight for the environment and for Manitoba.”

“We recognize the importance of agriculture here in Manitoba, and with our rural communities, but at the same time, Lake Winnipeg is incredibly important to Manitobans and we want to do everything we can to protect it.”

Manitoba’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change Mike Moyes said the province is intent on collaborating with North Dakota, as well as the federal government, to reduce the risk the two dairies have a negative impact on the province’s waters.

“We recognize the importance of agriculture here in Manitoba, and with our rural communities, but at the same time, Lake Winnipeg is incredibly important to Manitobans and we want to do everything we can to protect it,” he said.

Moyes said he has written letters to the federal environment minister, the governor of North Dakota, and to the International Joint Commission, the latter of which, he added, is already working through a process of considering mitigation measures.

Marielle Gauthier of the Manitoba Métis Federation said in a statement that “any environmental impacts related to this project will flow into Manitoba, the heart of our national homeland, and we urge agencies in the United States to consider these impacts when approving projects.”

“The benefits of the project will be local but the ecological impacts will be international,” she said.

Contacted midday Saturday, the company behind the two dairies, Riverview, LLP, did not respond to a request for comment. In a statement to the North Dakota Monitor last week, Riverview said its dairies “meet or exceed strict environmental standards.”

marsha.mcleod@freepress.mb.ca