Michael Patrick
Consent Order on cleanup underway at CSX derailment site
Don Jacobs
1:21 PM, Aug 6, 2015
State officials are working on a consent order with CSX railroad administrators concerning future monitoring of the environment where a train derailed and caught fire near Maryville.
Meanwhile, residents with wells within one-half mile of the July 1 derailment site along Old Mountain Tabor Road are still advised to avoid drinking the water.
The consent order is being cobbled together through the Division of Remediation’s Voluntary Assistance Program under the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, according to TDEC Deputy Communications Director Eric Ward.
“This program stipulates that CSX must meet certain requirements, including long-term monitoring plans for the wells and surface water, and continued evaluation and treatment of soils,” Ward said.
TDEC’s Division of Water Resources shared monitoring or sampling data with the remediation group so officials can evaluate how CSX cleanup efforts are proceeding, Ward said.
State officials, he said, are “reviewing all monitoring and sampling data, but we are no longer actively sampling” surface or well water. Ward said state authorities previously were actively engaged in sampling of water sources.
“We did this to provide quality assurance and quality control to the process,” Ward said.
CSX contractors now are testing samples of water, soil and air.
CSX contractors excavated about 4,000 pounds of soil from the derailment site, according to CSX spokeswoman Kristin Seay.
Workers last Friday finished removing soil from the Armona Road staging area and on Monday began loading excavated soil from a staging site on Old Mountain Tabor Road. CSX said that work is expected to be completed next week.
CSX conducts air testing while the soil is being removed.
CSX has 25 monitoring wells near the derailment site to test for contamination from the 24,000 gallons of acrylonitrile that leaked from the ruptured tanker car. One well closest to the site showed some contamination, so CSX officials arranged to provide city water connections to nearby residents who had been using well water.
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