Posted on August 17 2018
Train Derailment on the West Branch of the Upper Delaware River – Update #8
Here is the latest statement from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation on the UDR train derailment:
From NYSDEC on 8/17:
Statement for attribution to NYS DEC
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is continuing to monitor the cleanup concerning the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (NYSW) train derailment that occurred last Thursday in the town of Deposit in Delaware County. DEC Spill Response staff continue to assess potential environmental impacts, but there are currently no restrictions on the use of the river outside the immediate area of the incident.
Removal of the freight cars is almost complete. NYSW and its environmental contractor have excavated the impacted soil. Approximately 65 tons of stockpiled soil will be removed early next week and sent to a permitted landfill for disposal.
The area where the backwater meets the west branch has been completely boomed off. A slight sheen is visible on the river near the accident site and under the Hales Eddy Road bridge. Water samples were taken of the river and the assessment of the river continues. The spill contractor will continue to change out booms as needed. Early next week the contractor will excavate a shallow three-foot wide and four feet deep trench approximately 115 feet long in the area where three locomotives lost diesel fuel. The contractor will apply an EPA-approved liquid formulation of several microbial strains, surfactants and nutrients (called Micro-Blaze) designed to digest organics and hydrocarbons in soil and water as well as control odors. This bioremediation technique helps supplement natural microbes that exist in the environment to speed up the breakdown of the petroleum products leaving behind only the harmless by-products of carbon dioxide and water. In addition, the contractors have been asked to remove any trash encountered once the cleanup is complete.
We will keep you posted as we learn more.
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