On 04/24/06 at approximately 1500 hrs. EDT, an oil sheen was reported at Slim Island, located at MM 834 on the Ohio River, approximately 8 miles northeast of Uniontown, KY (NRC Report No. 794997). USCG Sector Ohio Valley (SOHV) responded and confirmed that an apparent source of crude oil was emanating from rip rap on the northeast tip of Ship Island, nearest to the Kentucky shoreline. USCG SOHV obtained a FPN from the USCG National Pollution Funds Center (NPFC) and hired a BOA contractor (AES, Inc., Newburg, IN) in an attempt to contain the oil. Further investigation disclosed that a crude oil production facility on the island is operated by Robinson Engineering & Oil Co., Inc. Evansville, IN. Robinson's representative was dispatched to the island late in the evening on 04/24, and transfer pumps which were operating were shut down. The pumps transfer crude oil through a 2" line running along the bottom of the Ohio River to the KY shoreline, over a distance of approximately 3,000 ft. The rate of crude oil entering the water diminished after the pumps were turned off, to an extent that the discharge was no longer visible on 04/25. Upon realizing that the likely source of the spill was from an EPA-regulated facility, USCG contacted the Region 4 Duty Officer and requested EPA's assistance. The Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection (KYDEP) Environmental Response Team (ERT) was also mobilized to respond, as the island lies within the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
On 04/25, EPA OSC Smith arrived onscene at approximately 1000 hrs. EDT. Also present were USCG SOHV, KYDEP ERT and the RP. The OSC learned from the RP's rep that up to 500 gallons of crude oil couldn't be accounted for from transfer operations conducted on 04/24. The assessment continued with inspection of the wellhead on Slim Island nearest to the Kentucky shoreline, and the area along the banks where crude oil was observed previously. The wellhead did not appear to be the source of the crude oil discharge. No evidence of crude oil product was found on surface water, and only a patchy light sheen was observed on the water surface near the suspected source.
All parties then participated in a shoreline assessment downstream of Slim Island, as oil was discovered on 04/24 as far as 12 miles downstream at the JT Meyers Lock and Dam. The assessment was conducted by boat downstream of the leak site. Areas covered included the entire length of the Slim Island shore fronting along the KY shoreline, the entire perimeter of Slim Island Towhead, and along the left descending bank of the Ohio River to MM 838.5. (Areas along the Indiana shoreline were not inspected, as the location of the source and the likely flow path did not predict impacts in those locations). No evidence of crude oil product was discovered, and the response to the oil discharge was determined to be complete by the OSC.
USCG SOHV and their contractor personnel demobilized the scene at 1400 hrs. EDT. The EPA OSC and the KYDEP ERT rep demobilized the incident at 1800 hrs. EDT, after meeting with the RP to discuss requirements for resuming transfer operations from the island to tank batteries on the KY shore.
Robinson Engineering committed to the following actions to be completed in advance of resuming transfer operations:
-evacuating all remaining oil product in the transfer line (this line is estimated to contain about 4 barrels of crude oil/1,000 ft. of pipeline)
-conduct an integrity test, using air pressure to evaluate the condition of the existing 3000' transfer line section which goes under the Ohio River.
-evaluate need to anchor the section of flexible piping to the rip rap face on the northeast tip of Slim Island. This section of piping was observed by the OSC to be under stress due to water currents.
Robinson Engineering agreeed to notify the EPA OSC and KYDEP ERT several days in advance as to the date and time of the integrity test. Robinson was also instructed to have containment boom and a recovery capability in place prior to applying air pressure to the transfer line.
At a meeting on 04/25 attended by both EPA and KYDEP, Robinson agreed to suspend over water transfer operations until such time as EPA and KYDEP were satisfied with the transfer line's integrity. The EPA OSC will issue a Clean Water Act 311(c) Order to Robinson Engineering to document agreements reached at the 04/25/06 meeting concerning startup of transfer operations.
As the source of the leaking oil was stabilized after the pumps were turned off, Robinson Engineering is suspected to be the Responsible Party (RP) for this incident. However, Robinson Engineering does not acknowledge that it was their facility that was the source of the oil discharge to the Ohio River on 04/24.
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