SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE

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Bert E. Van Voris • - 5 - • 25 February 2005 Supervising Engineer Land Application Management Musco intends to continue field-scale agronomic tests to develop methods to manage wastewater and improve/remediate soil conditions for the future and continue to retain the expertise of a farm/crop advisor on a day-to-day basis. The addendum indicates Musco has improved and/or intends to improve management of the onsite land application area by the following: • Reducing process wastewater flows • Using supplemental irrigation water supply • Reducing wastewater BOD and nitrogen levels and increasing winter storage capacity with the installation of the reservoir • Scheduling shorter irrigation sets to minimize runoff and erosion • Distributing wastewater more effectively with the installation of newer irrigation equipment and rotating irrigation more uniformly • Conditioning the soil with sulfuric acid and gypsum to improve soil permeability and minimize runoff and erosion • Planting multiple salt tolerant crops (e.g., winter ryegrass, summer or winter barley, Bermuda grass, alfalfa, Distichlis) at staggered dates such that there are fields available for irrigation throughout the year • Experimenting with and improving the type of crop • Incorporating organic soil amendments (e.g., olive leaves, pond silt)via tillage into bands that contour along slopes where runoff occurs to minimize runoff and erosion • Limiting the organic soil amendments (e.g., olive leaves, pond silt) total nitrogen loading rate to 2001b/acre/year by applying over a larger area and sequentially rotating application over all land application fields • Converting the irrigation systems in the flatter fields (i.e., check fields, the evaporation fields, and the 18-acre field)to surface irrigation to allow irrigation of crops sensitive to leaf burn • Constructing runoff control and collection systems • Scheduling a longer duration between irrigations of fields that use surface irrigation • Alternating the areas which receive wastewater to allow fields to `rest' The addendum states that, once the use of surface irrigation methods demonstrate healthier crop growth and production, other irrigation methods that do not contact leaf tissue can be considered, such as the use of drip emitters, "T-Tape" or low pressure micro-sprinklers beneath tree or shrub canopies. The addendum states that this method maybe appropriate for use on check fields adjacent to Mr. Harpainter's property. Comment: The RWD should evaluate the soil quality in the check fields to determine the extent to which resumption of discharge to this area may leach stored waste constituents, and the consequent potential affect on groundwater. Also, the RWD should describe