January
26, 2024
A temporary access road is being placed along
the north side of the railroad ditch in preparation for the excavation of
impacted material. Pumping from the source area ditch and maintenance of the
McClellan Run dam area continues. An additional storm sewer with pump was
discovered on the west side of the site, which will be investigated for oil
contamination when weather conditions allow. Two roll-off dumpsters with
oil-impacted debris were transported off-site for disposal. To date,
approximately 2,500-gallons of oil have been recovered and disposed of off-site
from the railroad ditch and the North Branch of McClellan Run.
January
13-24, 2024
Due to continued snow accumulation and
freezing temperatures, cleanup operations were suspended with minimal on-site
activities. EPA's contractor manually checked and replaced the absorbent materials along the ditch, as needed. The
dam in the North Branch of McClellan Run and the on-site waste staging areas
are observed daily.
January
12, 2024
The responsible party mobilized a contractor
to clean up newly discovered oil on the surface of the parking lot near the
on-site staging area. The area will continue to be monitored for surfacing oil
and continued migration to the on-site storm sewer system.
EPA
constructed an underflow dam in the North Branch of McClellan Run that will
stop the flow of oil to McClellan Run. The oil will accumulate on the surface
behind the dam for recovery and clean water will continue to flow
downstream.
January
11, 2024
Sample results indicate the oil present in
the railroad ditch is the same oil that was discharged from the on-site storm
sewer system on the responsible party's property. All samples contained
slightly to moderately weathered light fuel oil mixed with lubricating oil that
were derived from a common source petroleum oil.
EPA
observed pockets of oil surfacing in the parking lot staging area on the
responsible party's property. The oil is coming from under the newly placed
gravel fill material in the parking lot and spreading throughout the area. The
oil appears to be surfacing due to recent precipitation at the site.
January
7-10, 2024
Cleanup activities continued in the impacted
areas along the railroad ditch and the North Branch of McClellan Run. Oil
recovered from the impacted ditch areas is stored in three 20,000-gallon FRAC
tanks that are staged on-site. The oil absorbent booms and pads are being
collected and staged in two on-site 20,000-cubic yard roll-off boxes. EPA
received access rights to construct a temporary road along the North Branch of
McClellan Run. The temporary road will facilitate the cleanup activities along
the waterway.
January
6, 2024
EPA contractors used two vacuum trucks to
remove visible oil from the railroad ditch and from the North Branch of
McClellan Run and conducted cleanup of several oil-impacted areas along the
ditch. Absorbent oil booms and padding were placed in the oil-impacted areas of
the ditch and near contaminated soils. After coordinating temporary access with
the railroad, a portion of the railway was closed during the day for cleanup
operations. One of the vacuum trucks was moved along the railroad tracks to
assist in removing oil contamination along the railroad ditch. Soil and water
samples from the impacted areas were collected and sent to a lab for analysis.
Background
On January 3, 2024, waste oil was discovered
in a county drainage ditch adjacent to the C&J Bark Haulers facility in
Hemlock, MI. The oil flowed through the county
drainage ditch which leads to Swan Creek, the Shiawassee River and eventually
the Saginaw River. The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes &
Energy (EGLE) requested EPA assistance on this incident. Sorbent boom, essentially pads to absorb oil, was placed in Swan Creek by the local fire
department. EPA arrived to the site to conduct
documentation, air monitoring and sampling. EPA removed the oil from the waterways. EPA will
continue to coordinate with local and state officials and the potentially
responsible party.
