On Thursday, 11/04/10, an employee of M.L. Albright & Sons, Inc. (Albright), was transferring waste oil from an outdoor aboveground storage tank (AST) with an estimated capacity of 3,000 gallons. This AST is connected to four sequentially connected ASTs situated within an adjacent shop building. The indoor ASTs fuel an oil burner used to heat the shop building. Two of the four indoor ASTs each have an estimated capacity of 100 gallons and the remaining two ATSs each have an estimated capacity of 250 gallons. While transferring waste oil from the outdoor AST to one of the indoor ASTs, the employee stepped away and when he returned found oil overflowing from one of the ASTs.
An estimated 100 to 200 gallons of oil spilled to the floor and traveled from the shop building on the ground surface and through a floor drain into a nearby drainage ditch. The waste oil then flowed down the ditch about 100 feet into an unnamed creek. Once in the creek, the oil flowed downstream about 1000 feet where it then flowed through a residential holding pond and further downstream into Lindsay Creek. The creek ultimately flows into the Clearwater River. The affected landowner reported the incident to the Nez Perce County Sheriff on 11/06/10, and on 11/07/10, EPA responded to the incident at the request of the State of Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ).
Albright assumed responsibility for the release and initiated cleanup activities on Saturday, 11/06/10. Absorbent pads and other materials were placed within the shop building as well as along the ditch and creek. Waste oil was observed an estimated one-half mile downstream from the confluence of the ditch with Lindsay Creek. All cleanup activities are occurring within a unified command structure bringing together EPA, IDEQ, and the RP. The RP has contracted with an engineering firm to provide assessment and cleanup services.
