On 13 August 2011, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) was notified of a fish kill on the Pearl River. LDEQ began investigating the incident. LDEQ identified a possible cause of the fish kill as a release of black liquor into the river. On 09 August 2011, Temple-Inland (TIN) paper mill located in Bogalusa, Washington Parish, Louisiana released black liquor into the Pearl River due to a reported malfunction in their waste water treatment system. Black liquor is a corrosive liquid used in the break-down of wood fibers during paper manufacturing. On 13 August 2011, the paper mill voluntarily shut-down due to the incident. Louisiana and Mississippi State officials, as well as the EPA are continuing the investigation.
Region 4 specific OSC website: http://www.epaosc.org/PearlRiverFishKill
For public health questions, citizens may also call the Poison Control Center: 1-800-222-1222
