By Kristin Rover
Sun staff
Officials with Duke Energy have been working hard the past week to clean up diesel fuel oil in the Ohio River from a spill that occurred at New Richmond W.C. Beckjord Station on Aug. 18.
Sally Thelen, communications manager at Duke Energy, said cleanup operations have been ongoing since the spill was first discovered around 11 p.m. that night.
Thelen said that Duke Energy is working with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Ohio EPA, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and other local agencies in response to the spill.
She said Clean Harbors, the company contracted to clean up the spill, responded quickly and has been continuing cleanup efforts.
“They are still here and available,” Thelen said.
Thelen said the cleanup has included the use of booms, vacuums, and skimmers to remove oil from the river
She said that after the progress made last week, the cleanup efforts have begun to slow down.
Thelen said the contractor will be focusing this week on the riverbank area near where the spill occurred as well as responding to any additional calls.
Thelen said after initially estimating the spill to be around 5,000 gallons, they believe after investigating that approximately 9,000 gallons of fuel spilled into the river.
She said the exact cause of the spill, which occurred during a fuel oil transfer at the plant, is still under investigation.
“It does appear to be human error that left a valve open and caused the overflow,” Thelen said.
For more information about the spill is available at www.duke-energy.com.