LAKE ST LOUIS, Mo. — Lake St. Louis residents are sharing their concerns about a meat packing plant and its water treatment facility upstream under construction near Wright City.
Thursday is the last day to submit public comments to the state.
Karen Clark and her husband have lived on Lake St. Louis for more than 30 years. Being out on the 550-acre lake is part of their everyday life.
“We moved out here so we could ski and boat. And my daughter and I both skied on the ski team,” Clark said.
Now, a new meat packing plant and its water treatment facility will be just miles down the road near Wright City. That water treatment facility is being built next to Puruque Creek, which directly feeds Lake St. Louis. While construction is already underway, they are currently going through the permitting process with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
Clark said Puruque Creek is already on the list of compromised streams.
“I know that dumping into it could make it worse, we could end up with algae blooms, and that's toxic. So our lake could be not for recreational use if that happens,” Clark said.
She never imagined she'd be worried about contamination from a creek for the second time in her life.
“I grew up across the street from Coldwater Creek. My first cancer was in 1984. I was 31 years old. My second cancer was in 2000,” Clark said.
Another neighbor, Matt Evans lives in Lake St. Louis and works in wastewater treatment for Novo Water Technologies. He said he's seen just how bad it can get.
“I think the residents should definitely be concerned," Evans said. "The pH levels are going to be an issue for wildlife, cancer risks, toxicity risks."
Evans said in his experience at other meat packing facilities, they don't test for everything that could be harmful and sometimes their company is coming in after contamination happens.
But it doesn't have to be that way.
“We use microorganisms basically. And we basically turn all the wastewater into clean water, and they allow us to dump it back into the river,” Evans said.
Clark said to make sure the residents are safe, she wants the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to take more action.
“We want them to rewrite the permit, rewrite that anti-degradation report. An anti-degradation report, I learned, is only done if a body of water is going to be degraded,” Clark said.
If you are concerned about the facilities, you have until 5 p.m. Thursday to voice your concerns to the DNR. You can find more information here.
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