Environmental group asks for state records on fish kills

SANDUSKY — An Ohio environmental group has filed an open records request, asking the state to list all fish kills that have occurred in northwest and western Ohio since 2000.The request made to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources comes as concern from environmental groups is rising over the role that manure from animal feeding operations is playing in fish kills and in the pollution of Lake Erie.Mike Ferner, coordinator for Advocates for a Clean Lake Erie, filed the request on Thursday, asking the ODNR for a list of all fish kills that have occurred in bodies of water since 2000 in ODNR Division of Wildlife Districts 2 and 5.If the ODNR responds to the request, it would shed light on fish kills in the Sandusky area. District 2 includes Erie, Ottawa, Sandusky and Huron counties, as well as counties further west such as Lucas and Wood counties. District 5 includes counties in west and southwest Ohio.Last week, Advocates for a Clean Lake Erie, a group based in Toledo, asked the Ohio EPA for an investigation into a massive fish kill in Williams County, located in northwest Ohio. The deaths of thousands of fish are believed to have been caused by pollution from manure."This is absolutely, 100 percent, a discharge into the waters of the U.S. and is a violation of the Clean Water Act, and we demand an immediate investigation using DNA tests," said Ferner, a former member of the Toledo City Council. "We need to know where this came from and hold the polluters strictly accountable. Not only has this polluter killed untold numbers of fish, but its toxic plume is on the way to Lake Erie where our drinking water comes from."The Ohio Environmental Council issued a report on Tuesday stating that Ohio has thousands of largely unregulated animal feeding operations which produce massive amounts of manure and which contribute to Lake Erie's harmful algal bloom problem.The 48-page report, written by Adam Rissien, director of clean water at the OEC, includes the following points:• Although Ohio has thousands of animal feeding operations, only 231 large Combined Animal Feeding Facilities, or CAFFS, are required to obtain Ohio Department of Agriculture permits.• Those 231 CAFFS generate 900,000 solid tons and more than 1.5 billion gallons of liquid manure each year, enough manure to fill the OSU football stadium 2.3 times.• The state could get a better handle on the effect of manure pollution if it required all animal feeding operations to register with the state. Animal feeding operations should be required to file publicly available plans for operation and management.• Soil tests should be required to determine if available cropland can handle the amount of manure being spread over it.Reach reporter Tom Jackson at jackson@sanduskyregister.com and follow him on Twitter @jacksontom.