Miller Chemical: DEP plans to prevent future issues
This week's heavy rain caused more contaminated water to spill from the Miller Chemical site into nearby Slagle Run, and with more rain expected this weekend, cleanup crews are are tasked with finding waysto contain future runoff.
Miller Chemical: DEP plans to prevent future issues This week's heavy rain caused more contaminated water to spill from the Miller Chemical site into nearby Slagle Run, and with more rain expected this weekend, cleanup crews are are tasked with finding waysto contain future runoff. Check out this story on eveningsun.com: https://evesun.co/1USCX4O
Lillian Reed, The Evening Sun Published 5:20 p.m. ET Jan. 14, 2016 | Updated 5:22 p.m. ET Jan. 14, 2016
This article was originally published by The Evening Sun June 19, 2015
More than 2 inches of rain fell into a contaminated runoff trench at the Conewago Township facility and into a nearby swale, a natural depression in the land. Water from the swale then overflowed into Slagle Run, said Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection representative John Repetz.
The concentration of contaminants in the water this past week was greatly reduced compared to the polluted runoff that entered the waterway on the day of the fire, according to a DEP release.
Rain, lack of storage complicates containment
Earlier this week, officials were pumping water from the swale into an above ground tank in hopes of managing the levels of contaminated water, Repetz said. However, that tank, capable of holding one million gallons, has been filled to capacity because of the recent rain, he said.
Emptying the tank to make room for more runoff has proved challenging for the cleanup crews, which need to find a water treatment facility capable of taking the water and treating it to remove the contamination, Repetz said.
"They are encountering issues as far as finding facilities willing to take that quantity of material," he said, adding that those water facilities that do have the capacity to take such a large amount of water are ill-equipped to treat it for the contamination.
Miller Chemical is bringing in 30 additional portable tanks capable of holding 20,000 gallons each on Friday or Saturday, Repetz said. Trucks are also on standby, waiting to start moving water off site as soon as the disposal option is finalized. That would free up additional storage space on site, the DEP stated in a press release.
Officials will need to decide what is the most efficient way to use the new water storage tanks over the weekend when more severe thunderstorms are expected.
Repetz said they could either empty the million-gallon tank or pump the water with the highest concentrations of contamination from the retention trenches near the site of the fire.
Meanwhile, residents are still being asked to refrain from fishing, boating and swimming in the Conewago Creek.
Thousands of fish were killed last week in the Conewago Creek after runoff from the June 8 fire contaminated the waterway.
Since the fire, New Oxford Municipal Authority's water intake from Slagle Run, which flows into the creek, has been shut off. The authority is receiving water through the York Water Company, as well as Hanover and Gettysburg.
No water from Slagle Run is being used for public drinking water until it is declared free of contaminants. Miller Chemical site update
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