MEADVILLE -- The Department of Environmental Protection’s public files relating to the June 30 train derailment that severely impacted Sinnemahoning-Portage Creek will be available for review beginning next week at the Cameron County Courthouse.
The Cameron County Conservation District is housing the document repository at its office in Room 105 of the courthouse, 20 E. Fifth St., Emporium. Residents should contact conservation district Manager Jan Hampton by phone at 814-486-9353 or via e-mail at ccconservation@cameroncountypa.com to arrange an appointment for a file review.
“We want to help residents stay informed about the activities taking place in their community,” DEP Northwest Regional Director Kelly Burch said. “Having documents available to residents in a location that is convenient to them is an important aspect of keeping individuals up to date with an issue that will be ongoing for an extended period of time.”
About 44,000 gallons of sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda or lye, spilled when 28 Norfolk Southern railroad cars derailed June 30. Some of the sodium hydroxide entered Sinnemahoning-Portage Creek and devastated aquatic life and fish from the accident site near the McKean County village of Gardeau to a point 7.5 miles downstream in Cameron County.
An unknown amount of sodium hydroxide soaked into the ground in and around the derailment site, and this residual material needs to be addressed to ensure a complete recovery of Sinnemahoning-Portage Creek.
DEP currently is reviewing a site assessment plan that Norfolk Southern submitted detailing what steps the company intends to take to precisely identify the areas of contamination. The plan indicates the railroad will use borings and probes to gather information about the soil below the surface and install numerous monitoring wells to collect information about groundwater to determine the depth and breadth of contamination.
Based on the findings of the site assessment, Norfolk Southern will develop a cleanup plan that will be implemented once DEP approves it.
At the site this week, crews are cutting up and removing damaged railcars.
The public still is advised to avoid the creek starting at the spill area and extending south two miles downstream to the county border of McKean and Cameron.
For more information on water quality, visit DEP’s Web site at www.depweb.state.pa.us, Keyword: “Water Quality.”