The Environmental Protection Agency has reached agreement with the J.R. Simplot Co. to staunch the flow of phosphorus blamed for polluting the Portneuf River in eastern Idaho.
The EPA announced the agreement Tuesday requiring the company to invest millions of dollars and make other operational changes at its Don Plant in Pocatello to curtail the amount of phosphorus flowing into the river.
EPA officials say 80 percent of the phosphorus entering the waterway comes from the company’s fertilizer plant. The chemical is blamed for the algae blooms and massive plant growth downstream of the plant as far as American Falls Reservoir.
One component of the cleanup plan requires Simplot to install a liner over the massive pile of waste blamed as the main pollution source.
