On the south side of Webster County Road D20 about halfway between Fort Dodge and Duncombe is a sprawling maze of tanks and pipes that is the local Koch Nitrogen plant.

Every year this facility churns out hundreds of thousands of tons of nitrogen-rich fertilizer. It is a key element in the agricultural economy.

It is about to get some major upgrades.

Company executives have announced a plan to invest $140 million in the site, boosting production capacity by 85,000 tons annually. The work is expected to begin next year and be done by the fall of 2022.

This will be the latest in a series of upgrades Koch Fertilizer has conducted there since buying the plant from Farmland Industries.

Whenever a company announces such a big investment, it is logical to ask how many jobs will be created. Although some local officials have speculated that such a large increase in production will inevitably create new jobs, company officials haven’t said so.

Whether or not any new permanent jobs will be created, we must not lose sight of the enormous positive impact the project will have. When the work really gets underway, there could be as many as 1,500 employees of various contractors working at the plant. That means there will be 1,500 more people shopping in local stores, eating in local restaurants and even staying in local hotels.

And as the project progresses Koch Fertilizer will be ordering materials and supplies locally, across the state and perhaps even nationally. That means more money being pumped into the economy at a time when it’s really needed.

Upgrading that fertilizer plant promises to be an economic windfall.

We are pleased that the leadership of Koch Fertilizer sees fit to continue investing in our county. We believe that those investments are a reflection of the high quality local workforce which keeps the facility running smoothly and efficiently.