Manure leak from farm cellar in Statland-Utvorda, Norway, Digi Mart USA News (Statland-Utvorda, Norway): Police and firefighters responded early Friday morning to a report of a manure leak from a farm cellar on a property between Statland and Utvorda. The farm sits near a river and not far from the sea, so firefighters focused on assessing how far the leak had spread across the fields.
An estimated 130 cubic meters of cow manure had escaped the cellar, equal to roughly 10 to 14 full loads of a standard truck. The farm is leased by Torstein Ekker of Statland, who said the leak was discovered by the substitute worker who called him early Friday morning.
Ekker said a stick in the manure gate had broken, causing the leak, and that the leak was no longer active by the time he spoke with NA.
Ekker said he was uncertain whether the entire cellar would need to be emptied, adding that the immediate task was to clear a route to the farm and repair and reinforce the cellar gate. He said the spill would likely mean less fertilizer available in the spring.
Ekker keeps 15 dairy cows and five calves, and said a calf was expected that day.
Watch commander Kåre Peder Norvik of the Mid-Norway 110 Central said firefighters from the Nord-Statland unit arrived early to assess the incident and how far the material had spread. He said the manure had appeared to stop spreading in one place, and that crews began damming the flow to prevent it from reaching the nearby river.
Police later reported that a digger had been requisitioned to build the dam, and that there was no longer any danger of contamination of the river or fjord.
Police said the remaining contents of the cellar would be emptied and moved to another barn. Norvik said firefighters had finished at the scene and that the farmer had engaged a contractor to take over further responsibility.
He said the main concern was rainfall, which could cause runoff and carry the material to the river.
