Cassville water concerns follow proposed 900,000-gallon tank

Missouri regulators are reviewing a tentative permit for a proposed 900,000-gallon sludge-storage tank about two miles north and uphill from Cassville, while city officials seek more information about protections for the municipal drinking-water supply.

HydroAg Environmental LLC has proposed the facility on private property along Farm Road 1095. The project is being reviewed under Missouri State Operating Permit MO0141020, a draft no-discharge wastewater treatment facility permit with effluent limitations, schedules and special conditions, according to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources public notice.

According to DNR records, the public-comment period ran from May 22 through July 15, 2026, after an extension from the original July 1 deadline. As of July 29, DNR had not issued a final decision on whether to finalize, revise or decline the tentative permit.

Why Cassville officials are asking questions

Cassville City Administrator Richard Asbill asked DNR how the proposed storage operation would protect the city’s five public groundwater wells. The city’s concerns include the site’s uphill position, the area’s karst geology and the possibility that a release could affect groundwater pathways, as reported by the Cassville Democrat.

Questions described in the local report include whether the permit provides enough baseline and ongoing monitoring, how leaks would be detected, what containment measures would be required, how the city would be notified during an emergency and what would happen if stored material could not be disposed of as planned.

Those questions do not establish that contamination has occurred. The proposal concerns a private-property facility rather than a city-owned or city-operated project, and the tank has not been documented as completed, operating or under construction.

What the draft permit says

DNR said the draft permit prohibits spills and overflows, requires immediate reporting of releases and includes two leak-detection methods. Those provisions are part of the agency’s tentative conditions and remain subject to the permit review process. The draft State Operating Permit identifies the proposed facility and its operating conditions.

The proposed storage authorization and any future land-application authorization are separate decisions. The draft permit for storage does not itself authorize future land application of the stored material.

What residents should watch next

The next significant step is DNR’s final determination after reviewing public comments and any requested changes. For Cassville residents, the final permit language will matter because the city’s public water system relies on groundwater wells, as documented in the Cassville Public Water System annual water quality report, and the proposed site is located uphill from town.

Until DNR makes a final decision, the project should be understood as an unresolved permit proposal rather than an approved facility or an active contamination event. The key questions are whether the agency changes the draft conditions and whether the final record provides the monitoring, containment and emergency-notification details sought by Cassville officials.

Sources

• Missouri DNR public notice for the HydroAg-Cassville storage tank proposal
• Cassville Democrat: Cassville public water concerns arise