BALTIMORE, MD
The Coast Guard is overseeing a response to an oil spill Thursday at CP Crane Generating Station in Baltimore.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Baltimore received a report from
the National Response Center of approximately 3,000 gallons of
lubrication oil in the discharge canal at CP Crane Generating Station in
Baltimore.
“At around 6:30 a.m. today, approximately 3,000 gallons of
lubricating oil was unintentionally released into the Crane plant’s
discharge canal,” said Todd Martin, spokesperson for Talen Energy. “The
canal is a man-made, lined structure with equipment in place to capture
material in the event of a release.”
Personnel from Maryland Department of the Environment, Clean Venture,
Inc. and Miller Environmental Group are on scene conducting clean up
operations, and have recovered approximately 2,000 gallons of oil.
Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research personnel are also on scene and assessing any impact to local wildlife.
“We arrived at about noon and were given two moderately oiled
ducklings that were bright and alert,” said Michelle Neef, oil programs
coordinator with Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research. “We were able to
conduct a survey where we went about half a mile to the boom. We noticed
only one other mallard that had been affected, which we’ll try to aid
again tomorrow.”
Approximately 2,500 feet of boom is deployed to prevent oil from
leaking out of the man-made canal and into the Chesapeake Bay. Areas of
visible sheen were reported outside of boom, but were deemed
unrecoverable by response personnel.
“Protecting the environment is a fundamental aspect of our
operations,” said John Strauch, vice president of plant operations for
Talen Energy. “When the malfunction was identified, our technicians took
immediate steps to stop the source of the leak and contain the
lubricating oil. Their actions, combined with the assistance of the
Coast Guard, MDE, our environmental consultants and local wildlife
specialists, preserved and protected the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.”
“Talen Energy and CP Crane Generating Station have highlighted the
value of having an effective response plan,” said Cmdr. Michael Keane,
chief of response at Coast Guard Sector Baltimore. “Their pre-staged
equipment and quick response actions have ensured minimal environmental
impact.”
Of course the Coast Guard is a bunch of amateurs when comes to oil response. The private contractors are always able to "rose-color" everything and to hoodwink the guardsmen.