Putrefying soybeans cause stink

SANDPOINT — Something is rotten in the Colburn Culver region — and it happens to be soybeans.

Complaints are pouring into the Panhandle Health District from residents near the site of an April train derailment about an overwhelming stench seriously impacting quality of life. According to Panhandle Health District spokesperson Cynthia Taggart, leftover soybeans spilled from the Union Pacific derailment are the cause of the problem.

While the majority of the spillage was removed to an approved disposal site in Oregon, the remaining soybeans are now putrefying, and the stench is making life miserable for those caught within the area of impact. One nearby household reported that the smell was bad enough to keep them cloistered indoors.

According to Taggart, the question is open as to how cleanup crews will handle the rotting soybeans. An approximately 2,000 cubic yard mixture of dirt and soybeans will need to be addressed. While the concoction is about 95 percent dirt and 5 percent soybeans, it will still all need to be disposed of in some form or another.

Taggart said the crew’s original plan was to bury the offending material based on the authority of permits obtained through Idaho Transportation Department. However, the Department of Environmental Quality has yet to weigh in on the issue. Based on an evaluation from the department, its personnel may insist that the offending material be taken to an approved disposal site. On the other hand, DEQ authorities may determine the ratio of soybeans to dirt insufficient to warrant extraordinary measures and give the go-ahead on the burial.      

The train derailment originally occurred on April 1 after saturated soil loosened by wet spring weather gave way, taking a 350-foot section of track with it. More than a dozen cars overturned in the accident, including six bearing a large shipment of soybeans.

The derailment occurred near Selkirk Road about 400 yards north of Colburn Culver Road.