From: The Otter - Winter 2020

Hold the salt: Be mindful of overusing de-icer and salt on icy driveways, parking lots and sidewalks. Be careful not to use more salt than necessary in residential and commercial water softeners. Is your water softener necessary at all? Why these concerns? Because elevated levels of salt –specifically the sodium chloride part of salt- in our rivers and streams is destructive and unhealthy. One teaspoon of salt can pollute five gallons of water. And while there is no good way to remove chloride from water, we can reduce our impact on water resources. For example, after salting has melted ice, sweep up the remaining salt and dispose of it. Otherwise, it will be washed into the nearest storm drain and into a waterway.

Liberalizing atrazine use: The Trump administration intends to weaken safeguards for atrazine, a weed-killing pesticide linked to birth defects and cancer in humans. The proposed change will increase by 50 percent the amount of atrazine allowed in U.S. waterways. Atrazine, the nation’s second most used pesticide after glyphosate, is banned in Europe but is widely present in U.S. waterways and drinking-water supplies. This more lenient approach reverses an earlier EPA plan to reduce atrazine levels threefold.

Reversing progress: Rollbacks of key water protections for small creeks, tributaries and wetlands have been proposed by the Trump administration. Public interest advocates identified these small water bodies as significant components in the nation’s water network, while mining,agricultural, oil and land development interests lobbied to eliminate protections. The new, pro-business approach exposes half the nation’s wetlands and hundreds of thousands of miles of surface waterways to pollution. The finalized law will replace the Obama-era Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule, which was repealed by the Trump administration last year.

Dell Rapids protects the Big Sioux: Faced with an outdated wastewater treatment plant, the City of Dell Rapids choose to invest in a new facility that would release wastewater into the Big Sioux River that meets clean water standards. The project wasn’t the cheapest option for the community, but it was pursued because of the protections it provides to the Big Sioux River. In recognition of its high-minded decision, EPA’s Region 8 has honored Dell Rapids with the 2019 PISCES Exceptional Project Award. “We’re doing our part to make sure we don’t have a negative impact on the river,” said Justin Weiland, Dell Raids city administrator. “We’re proud that what we’re discharging into the Big Sioux River isn’t harming the river.”