FREDERICKTOWN — More than a week after a 15-gallon barrel was found in the Kokosing River in Fredericktown, an Ohio EPA spokesman said arrangements have been made to have the barrel removed today from its current location at the Fredericktown Community Fire District.
Fredericktown Fire Chief Scott Mast, who said he moved the barrel to the fire station at the request of the Ohio EPA on July 6, said early Monday that he was dissatisfied with the lack of response he received from the EPA. Ohio EPA spokeswoman Erin Strouse said asking a fire chief to secure the barrel would be consistent with EPA procedure.
Mast said that without the proper storage facilities to handle hazmat materials, he was surprised the Ohio EPA had told him to move and store the barrel, and then had not contacted him in over a week.
On July 7, Strouse said the orphan drum coordinator at Ohio EPA, who is responsible for the analysis and disposal of containers such as the one found in Fredericktown, would arrange to have the contents of the drum analyzed by the EPA right away. Strouse said the coordinator would then arrange to have the drum disposed of by an outside contractor within a few days.
When contacted by the News Monday, Strouse said she would look into the situation to see why no arrangements had been made.
“I really expected to hear from them that Monday, and now it’s been more than a week,” Mast said.
Late yesterday, Mast was contacted by Knox County EMA Director Marie Blubaugh, who said she had heard from the EPA that the barrel would be removed at 10:30 this morning.
Strouse, speaking in a conference call with her supervisor, Ohio EPA spokesman Heidi Griesmer, confirmed Monday evening that “in response to the community concern,” special arrangements were made on Monday to have the barrel removed immediately for analysis and proper disposal.
“Hundreds of orphan containers are picked up every year by our EPA staff and outside contractors. We want to be good financial stewards here,” she said, adding that the costs for removal of the containers are sometimes consolidated by arranging to pick up several at once from different locations.
“We can’t respond to every request for removal immediately,” Strouse said.
Strouse said that Jodi Billman, the orphan drum coordinator, was on vacation last week, and remains so. Strouse said that when she spoke with Kevin Clouse, manager of the Unit in Management and Remedial Response, on Monday, he had assigned an investigator from his division to pick up the barrel.
“I don’t think that’s a normal part of his job,” Griesmer said of the investigator. “But he probably has done this before.”
“I’m relieved that they are going to remove it,” Mast said. “But I’m disappointed that it took a phone call from the media to get them to do so.”
Mast said he was especially frustrated that no one from EPA ever contacted him after he initiated contact with them on July 6. He learned from Blubaugh the arrangements had been made.
“I still have not heard from anyone at the EPA,” Mast said late Monday.
Strouse said the container would be brought to a staging area in the Columbus area today for analysis and disposal.
“If it’s determined to be a substance of concern, we will let the public know,” she said.
Both spokeswomen said they were not aware of how long the analysis process may take, or when the information of what exposure the public may have faced, would be available.
Mast said when he took custody of the container, without knowing its contents, he believed the EPA would handle the situation promptly. He said that even though he is not happy with the situation, he would not change the decision to remove it from the river.
“I still would have the done the same thing, to protect people and the environment,” he said.
The container is unmarked, and does not appear to be leaking. ODNR Wildlife Officer Mike Miller, who originally received the complaint about the barrel and who called Mast, said there was no way to know how long the container had been in the river, or if any of its contents had leaked into the water.
