November 22, 2012
Ammonia discharges from a chicken processing plant in Shenandoah County are no longer violating the facility's water pollution permit.
The George's Inc. plant in Edinburg told state regulators in late October that ammonia discharges from its wastewater treatment plant into Stony Creek exceeded the permitted levels.
Gary Flory with the Department of Environmental Quality tells the Daily News-Record that water samples taken Saturday and Monday show ammonia levels have fallen below permitted levels. Additional tests are planned.
Flory says officials don't know what caused the ammonia levels to increase.
Bob Kenney is vice president of Virginia operations for Georgia's. He says bacteria were added at the wastewater treatment plant to help break down compounds. The bacteria grow naturally when the plant is operating normally.
