A Hunting We Will Go,
Hi Ho, Off We Go,
To Source Out The Fuel Flow.
The scent of petroleum was strong today and the rainbow sheen was bright. Instead of going to the store, I went hunting again, this time on the other side of the creek. Guess conditions were right because today the sheen was clearly coming from a drain pipe on the opposite side of the creek from where I thought it was coming from the other day.
So the hunt begins again. There was big grading equipment at a hotel construction site so off to see if they have an above ground diesel tank that might be leaking. Nope, no diesel tank at all. Started driving around the small industrial area and saw two huge diesel tanks in the back of the City of Mobile's WAVE Bus station facility. I asked for permission to go to the back of their facility to see if there was any diesel leaking from either of those two tanks. Boy did the people at the WAVE get all defensive. Oh HELL NO! Permission denied!
I was on the phone with the Coast Guard people at the time after calling in the spill for a third time to the National Response Center. Okay, since I am not allowed to inspect around the fuel tanks, would the Coast Guard come out and look? Nope. Not their jurisdiction or something like that. The NRC should be called the No Response Center.
Okay, so I drive around trying to find a place to get a closer look at those above ground fuel tanks and find myself in the back of a small industrial strip mall owned by Joseph Betbeze just north of the City's Bus Terminal property. The smell of diesel was sickening in the ditch along the north side of the WAVE property. A couple of the guys from the WAVE facility whom I'd talked with earlier came out and asked if I had permission to be trespassing. Boy, what are these City people trying to hide? I'm not even on City property.
But, to be safe, I asked around with the people working in the industrial center if it was okay for me to walk along the small concrete ditch that sits between the City's WAVE bus facility and the industrial complex. Sure, go ahead. Thanks guys.
The smell of fuel oil is strong. Even though it is not raining, there is rainbow colored water flowing down into the drainage ditch from under the curb bordering the City property. Hmmm. There is thicker petroleum coming from further upstream. Upstream there is standing water in the wetlands - water coated in what appears to be fuel oil. Petro flowing freely from the WAVE property and petro in the nearby wetlands, and two huge diesel tanks not far away? I'm thinking the source of the persistent fuel spill in Montlimar Creek has been found. Yeah!
Why would it not surprise me if it was the City's bus terminal that is polluting Dog River watershed with fuel oil? After all, the City ditches already serve the City as garbage chutes sending litter downstream to pollute Dog River. Why bother picking up roadside trash when the City can just wait for a big rain that will wash most of it away.
The scary thing is the very smelly fuel spill has been reported now for almost two months and neither the Alabama Department of Environmental Management or the Coast Guard Hazmat Response Center here in Mobile bothered to spend the time to track down the source. Yeah. An untrained citizen followed the smell.
I wonder how many man hours were spent by Mobile Baykeeper (Environmental watch dog group), Mobile Bay National Estuary Program (watershed management planners), City Public Works, and Mobile Group Engineering (storm water management) in attempts to track down the source of the fuel leak polluting Montlimar Creek?
To Be Continued.