Ball State may have caused creek pollution

MUNCIE – The Muncie Sanitary District and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management are conducting an investigation to determine whether Ball State University is responsible for pollution in Cardinal Creek, which runs through the campus.\nA preliminary investigation at the construction site of Scheumann Stadium consisted of putting white fabric-like filters in the storm drains of parking lots near the stadium.\nThe investigation was in response to a residential complaint that muddied water was discharging from a storm drain into the creek.\nThe creek became polluted in June 2006 when sediment from the bottom of the duck pond flowed into it. Ball State resolved the problem by pumping water from the pond onto a nearby hill, which filtered the sediment from the water before it went into the creek.\n“When there is a possibility that something has entered the water, the Muncie Sanitary Department works with the Department of Environmental Management to work it out,” Jim Lowe, director of engineering and operations at Ball State, said.\nLowe said the investigation determined that Ball State had not violated state and federal laws regulating construction site storm-water runoff, and they are taking all the necessary precautions to ensure they are not the problem.\nLowe said the Muncie Sanitary Department was trying to find the source of the problem and is researching all sites north of Bethel, Ind., that could be the possible source.\n“There are so many sites around the area, it is hard to determine the one site that is creating the problem,” Lowe said.\nThe fabric in the drains will filter the water and show if mud is draining at the particular site.\nSteve Polston, public information officer for the IDEM, said it was too soon to know the direct source of the problem and would not rule out Ball State as a possibility.\nLowe said he believes the problem resulted from the lack of rain Muncie has been experiencing.\n“Because it’s been so dry, everything dusts up and collects in the streets,” Lowe said. “With one big rain it can wash up everything from a parking lot and bring it down the drain, creating that muddy look in the water.”\nLowe said he would also like to put filters into the storm drains of the adjacent parking lots of the College’s stadium and alumni center as a precaution.\nMuddied storm drain runoff could include pollutants that harm aquatic life.