WILLIAMS — Officials are investigating a manure spill in north-central Iowa caused by a pipeline break. The state Department of Natural Resources says the spill was discovered Monday by a farmer harvesting corn near Williams in Hamilton County. The farmer reported finding liquid manure pooled in his field. The DNR says a break in an underground manure pipeline at a Prestage Farms operation led to the spill. The swine operation has a 15,000-head capacity.
Prestage Farms has built a dike to prevent manure from reaching a stream. It is currently pumping manure into a nearby lagoon. Water tests in a nearby drainage ditch known as Tipton Creek did not show elevated levels of ammonia.