In approximately 2008, The City of Albemarle collected and consolidated several pounds of mercury from various city labs, offices and departments, and stored it in a room on the second floor of the Long Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant office building. The City of Albemarle Waste Water Treatment Plant Operator noticed some spilled mercury on the concrete floor in the room; this prompted the city to solicited bids from contractors to conduct the transport and disposal of the mercury. The contractor assessed the mercury on 3/16/2016 and determined that it may have exceeded the reportable quantity and that it would require a more detailed work plan. Based on the contractor's recommendation, the City of Albemarle reported the incident to the National Response Center and North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
There are several containers of mercury in the storage area, it appears that one container was damaged and leaked approximately 15 to 20 pounds of mercury onto the floor of the storage room. There are no drains or hvac vents leading to or from the storage room. EPA advised the city to isolate the second floor and to open windows on the first floor to increase ventilation until a thorough assessment could be completed. The City is attempting to hire a contractor to mitigate the spill. OSC Rhame mobilized with START contractors to assess the remainder of the building and provide technical assistance to the response crew.
