Document 70R93zEEZmj23j7JyRrkr7Z8o

V. r Vv ukerly, i no. 1 <FM*Tl J1. r - . r -- ,7 rC ^o // m JVJM '1 1979 4 - From Columbia Missourian The Envi ronmental Protection Agency office in Kansas City, Mo., and O-H Materials Co. are still tasting for chemical ccntarr.ination in Sturgeon, four months ater the Jan. 11 train derailment that soi'Jrd potentially dangerous chemicals. Harry Gilmer, an EPA. `engineer, said the ground near the spill sits is "clean and okay,'' and that Sallng Creek is also safe for humans and soustic life. Meanwhile, O-H Materials Co. --a cleanup ilm hired by N'trfolk and Vi'estem Railway owners of the railroad car tarrying the chemical -- is using a cargor. filtration process to dean up pxids and surface runeff water. EPA is suing a special well to mcritcr ground water near trite site to determine how far the con taminated water has mjved Q cry VT\ ; h from tie original sits. The soil surrounding the site, contaminated by 20.000 gallons (75,708 liters) of or* thocnlorophenol, a type of carbolic add, has been dug up, and any dangerous con taminants, such as cioj.m, have h:-en removed. Gilmer said. Saling Creek on the west side of Sturgeon is also clean, Gilmer said. Safe levels of contamination are ICO cr fever parts c-f the chemical to one billion parts of water. The concen'.iVJ in in Salma Creek is now less than one part oi chemical lo cie biliitn parts of water. Gilmer said, "If there is contamination, it is below detection limits." "No action was taken to dean up SaL:r.g Creek, because the micros:mi: life -- or bacteria -- destroyed any con tamination, It was a natural e'earjr^ process/ Gilmer said. 1 4 /O Q y .O . T * O-H Materials Co. has been using carbon-iiltratica to ac celerate the dissolution of chemicals in perds and surface runoff water. In this process, fresh water is forced into the soil to dissolve the chemicals. The water spreads out and floods to the surface. It is then tested i:r its concentration level, filtered through the carbon-tiitratiwi units, deaned and recycled through tie system again. When O-H Materials Co. finds the orthochlorcphenol_ con tamination level is beiew 100 parts of chemical to cne billion parts of water -- which is the saietv level --EPA 'Rill test the water. Gilmer said, "The water cannot be discharged until it .found to be acceptable. By `acceptable,1we mean it will not create harm or endanger anything, including acuatic life."