As someone who lives in Kalamazoo and was in Marshall (the site of the spill)this last week visiting relatives, I thought the community might appreciate a few local insights to this disaster.
Thanks a million to Patriot Daily news Clearinghouse for his/her previous diary on this topic.
As things are still developing I can offer you a mixture of information from print, web link and face to face rumors. I am relaying only those rumors that I find credible (considering both the source and the content).
More after the jump.
The day of the spill the whole city of Marshall smelled like natural gas. It took Enbridge 12 hours to figure out that there was a leak and almost 4 hours after that to report the incident to the Feds (source: Kalamazoo Gazette print edition).
This spill of over 1 million gallons of oil in fresh water is unprecedented (see this excellent interview with Jeff Spoelstra, the coordinator of the Kalamazoo River Watershed Council). Several scientists on local radio and in the Kalamazoo Gazette have made the point that the effect of such a large spill in a fresh water environment is unknown.
From the Times:
Scientists fear that the worst may be yet to come for fish in the river. Jay Wesley, a biologist with the State of Michigan, said the oil spill had killed fish in "very limited numbers" along the affected stretch of the river, from Marshall westward into Battle Creek.
The bigger problems for fish may come within a week or so, if the spill results in decreased oxygen levels in the water. Mr. Wesley said insects, algae, frogs and turtles had been killed in high numbers, which could hurt the fish food supply.
"The effects are probably going to be more long-term," Mr. Wesley said. "We probably won’t know the full effects for weeks or months or years."
From the same link, the days of fishing in the Kalamazoo River near Marshall are done for the foreseeable future - they have been shot already for those of farther downstream due to PCB contamination from now defunct paper mills:
"health officials considered fish taken from the waters from Marshall to Battle Creek all right to eat in limited amounts — unlike those from a downstream, westward stretch from Kalamazoo that is laden with PCBs and is on the federal Superfund list of highly contaminated areas.
First hand observation indicates that the Kalamazoo river is over its banks right now - the plants/ecosystems in the floodplains will take quite a hit I would imagine as the oil damages the vegetation and soil.
Kellogg had to temporarily shut down a cereal plant as a result of the spill for fear that the odor would seep into the food. I hope they sue Enbrdige's pants off for business losses.
A downstream dam has apparently contained the spill so that it is unlikely that oil will make it down stream into Lake Michigan or on to the shores of other communities (such as Kalamazoo or Sagatuck).
Tonight the EPA is holding a townhall meeting at Marshall High School. We'll see what the latest news is.
The last I read (Kalamazoo Gazette) farmers have been advised (not banned) to not use the Kalamazoo River to irrigate their crops pending lab results. I have not heard if those labs show contamination downstream - if so they are screwed. August is quite dry. Farming without water to irrigate will cause substantial hardship. Let's hope those tests do not detect contamination. Test results are due today. Cross your fingers/pray, whatever it is you do please do it.
One final note, the Kalamazoo River basin is recovering from PCB contamination mentioned earlier. The river is just starting to make a comeback although there is a ways to go. We really don't need this. This river is not only our town's namesake - it cuts right through the middle of our downtown.
And the topperin terms of sheer disgust:
Battle Creek girl vomits black liquid
August 02, 2010 8:26 AM
BATTLE CREEK, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - Dozens of people have gotten sick from exposure to the oil in the Kalamazoo River.
We spoke with one woman in Battle Creek who says doctors diagnosed her daughter with hydro-carbon ingestion.
Yuck. Poor child.
Finally the latest news on the oil spill from local channel 3:
Fight the good fight folks.
May the wind take your troubles away.