The Ogeechee River has crested at flood levels and is expected to begin ebbing by Saturday, but river advocates are still concerned about pollutants in the waters.
    The Ogeechee reached a few inches over 11 feet Wednesday, National Weather Service meteorologist Jonathan Lamb said.
    The Ogeechee River rose to 11.3 feet Thursday afternoon, where it is expected to crest and only slowly recede, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist Steve Rowley. Flood stage is 9 feet.
    “We are not expecting major changes in the level through early next week,” Rowley said. “The official forecast shows the river receding back toward 11 feet Monday, but we are also expecting additional rainfall in the basin, which could change the forecast. We may find in the end that the level holds where it is for a longer period of time or even rises a little more.”
    The record flood measurement for the Ogeechee River was 17.15 feet on March 25, 1998, but in the past few years, droughts have prevented flooding.
    King America Finishing, a textiles plant under fire by riverfront land owners, environmentalists and others with concerns about the river, discharges wastewater into the river from its plant in Dover.
    After a massive fish kill in May 2011, which left behind around 38,000 dead fish along 90 miles downriver from the plant, the Ogeechee Riverkeeper organization and landowners expressed concerns, pointing the finger at King America.
    While an investigation by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division ruled the cause of the fish kill was columnaris, a bacterial disease caused by environmental stress, former Ogeechee Riverkeeper Dianna Wedincamp and others blamed the company’s discharge for exacerbating the river’s already drought-stressed condition.
    The EPD investigation also found King America had been operating without a valid permit for about five years. A consent order mandating King America make efforts to improve the river was rescinded after public protest that is was not stringent enough; a new proposal for a consent order is on the table and a public hearing on the matter will be held March 5 in Effingham County.
    Because the textiles factory has been operating without a permit, current Ogeechee Riverkeeper Emily Markesteyne said there could be cause for concern regarding King America’s effluent discharge even if the river waters are increased to flood level.
    “The flooding is not unnatural,” she said Wednesday, as the river’s waters neared the peak. “We’ve had a lot of rain, and (water level) is higher than normal, and with a stronger current.  The state (EPD) is telling us (King America) is not dumping any more than usual, but since they don’t have a permit to abide by, there is no permit to deter them” from discharging any amount of pollutants.
    “How do we really know?” she asked. “They have been caught before, how do we know they are not doing it now?”
    She said some citizens have expressed concern that King America might take advantage of higher flood waters and expel a higher amount of pollutants. However, EPD officials said that is not the case.
    “The flow is not the only limitation,” EPD Assistant Director Jim Ussery said. “The facility has limits on all constituents that cannot be exceeded regardless of flow. There are additional constraints during low-flow periods and contaminants are reduced proportionately. The volume of contaminants does not increase during periods of higher flow. Compounds in the discharge will be even lower in the river due to dilution and not greater.”
    Lee DeHihns III, an attorney with Alston & Bird, which represents King America Finishing, echoed the statements from EPD.
    DeHihns said King America has not increased its level of discharge, meaning an even smaller percentage of waste mixes with the Ogeechee.
    “The river flow at the flood stage does not affect our operations. We are not doing anything differently in terms of how we treat our wastewater,”  DeHihns said. “Our discharge level is set by permit (10 percent) and we are not discharging any more than we normally discharge, during any time of the year.”
    The company typically discharges approximately 3 percent of the river flow, he said. With water levels more than doubled this week, DeHihns said King is registering its discharge at approximately 0.2 percent of the river flow.
    “Whether the river flow is 50 feet about flood stage doesn’t matter, because we cannot discharge any more than 10 percent,” DeHihns said.
    EPD spokesman Kevin Chambers said information submitted in King America’s
    Operation Monitoring Report submitted Wednesday showed compliance for all “parameters that have required limits … (and) also shows King's percent of stream flow is less than 1 percent for this period. It can't be any greater than 10 percent.”
    The company tests daily for effluent acute toxicity, he said. Results for the period February 1-17 (17 samples), showed no toxicity.  “This data was provided in the weekly update that King provides to EPD,” he said.
    Inspectors from EPD visited King America Wednesday and “found no problems with their operation or discharge,” he said.
    Still, concerns for the river continue, especially since the company is still discharging without a permit, Markesteyne said.
    “It is a valid concern, just as it was before,” she said. “It’s true, the higher water levels will help the ecosystem, but since we don’t know what (the effluent discharge) is, we don’t know whether it is diluted or not.”
    Ogeechee River property owner Ben Anderson said he isn’t sure how the flooding will affect the levels of formaldehyde, ammonia and other pollutants in the river.
    “I’m glad it is flooding, but with no permit, the state is letting (King America) do as usual. I don’t know. The permit is not there, and they’re evidently still operating.”
    Lamb said the Ogeechee River was expected to crest Wednesday night, remain at that level for a couple days, and begin to ebb by Saturday.
   
    Staff Writer Jeff Harrison contributed to this report.
   
    Holli Deal Bragg may be reached at (912) 489-9414.