In the PM hours of 3/21/2018, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) requested EPA assistance with a discharge of oil from an abandoned automotive facility. Power was recently restored to the abandoned facility, which resulted in an unknown amount of oil being pumped into the property surrounding the facility. Approximately 300 feet of road side ditch have been impacted. It is estimated that approximately 1400 gallons of used oil were stored in the tanks inside the facility and it is unknown exactly how much remains in the tanks at this time. The local fire department has placed boom in an attempt to stop the oil but no additional response is being conducted by the responsible party or local responders. The owner of the property has indicated he does not have the financial means to respond. The impacted drainage ditch is in very close proximity to Big Cove Creek which leads to the Etowah River. There is no threat to the nearest downstream drinking water intake which is more than twenty miles downstream. Downstream notifications have been made to ADEM as a precaution. An EPA Region 4 On Scene Coordinator has been dispatched to ensure response is adequate.
