City pursues investigation of iron oxide property stains

Luverne City Council members are pursuing an investigation into what’s causing brown discoloration on houses in Luverne.
At Tuesday night’s meeting, the council authorized the mayor and city administrator to sign a contract with Braun Intertec Corporation, Sioux Falls.
The firm will assist the city with the “determining and source of an unknown substance that causes staining on personal property within the city.”
The stains have been a problem for nearly 15 years, but answers have been out of reach. Now, city building inspector Chad McClure is hoping for results.
“The MPCA and the EPA haven’t been able to definitively determine what is causing the yellow staining on citizens’ private property,” he said.
“We are continuing to encounter episodes of the staining and feel like we need to continue down the path of finding a resolution for the people in the community.”
He said he and the city were directed to seek help from Braun Intertec as a third-party firm.
“It is our understanding that they will start their investigative process through a fresh set of eyes, looking at all possible explanations, whether that is an environmental or climatic phenomenon, some sort of industrial emission or a combination of several factors,” McClure said. “We are hopeful that their expertise will provide us with the answers needed to move forward with a resolution.”
In 2018 the Minnesota Department of Health analyzed a sample of the substance that discolored dozens of homes and properties in Luverne’s western neighborhoods.
The lab results were “unable to detect hazardous compounds,” so residents were told they need not fear for their health.
The sample tested was scraped from a porch railing and trim from a home in the neighborhood near The Lake where the discoloration was most prevalent.
Lab results didn’t point to a source of the discoloration, however, which left an unclear path going forward for residents.
At first, they spent time scrubbing their homes and white trim, only to have the stains show up the following year. But many have given up and simply painted their houses a darker color that doesn’t show the contamination as clearly.
Without a source, McClure was unable to help residents, but now he’s hoping to find more answers.
According to council discussion, the fee for Braun Intertec services is not to exceed $15,000.