NC files complaint in court against Colonial Pipeline over massive gasoline spill
The state took legal action Tuesday against Colonial Pipeline Co. for what it said was a failure to help remedy North Carolina’s largest gasoline spill, which occurred in Huntersville last year.
The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality filed a motion in Mecklenburg County Superior Court seeking relief for its claims that Colonial hasn’t provided the state with “essential information” needed to clean up the site, as Colonial is the “responsible party.”
Two teenage ATV riders found the leak in the Oehler Nature Preserve in Huntersville in August 2020, the Observer previously reported.
To date, Colonial has recovered more than 1.23 million gallons of petroleum product from the site, but has “failed to provide DEQ with an updated volume estimate of the release,” the state said in its complaint.
“Colonial owes it to the people of North Carolina to cooperate with DEQ and be forthcoming with the information required by our statutes, starting with an accurate estimate of how much fuel was released into the environment,” DEQ Secretary Elizabeth Biser said in a news release. “DEQ is committed to holding Colonial accountable and we now seek a court order directing Colonial to comply with their obligations to cleanup and restore the communities impacted by the release.”
Colonial hasn’t explained the depth of petroleum contamination in soil and groundwater at the site, the DEQ said.
The site also has not been investigated for the contamination of manufactured chemical polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS), which is used to keep food from sticking to cookware and making clothes and carpets resistant to stains, according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
In a statement emailed to The Charlotte Observer on Tuesday, Colonial said it is reviewing the state’s legal filing. ”We are committed to working with NCDEQ to address the matters identified and will remain on site for as long as it takes to restore the surrounding environment.
“We have made significant progress to date,” the company stated, “and remain focused on recovering product as quickly and safely as possible which is in the best interest of the public.”
What the state wants
In its complaint, the state wants the court to order Colonial to take the following actions:
▪ Remove, treat or control any source of petroleum, PFAS or other contaminants that have the potential to contaminate groundwater.
▪ Provide DEQ with a current, revised estimate of the volume of petroleum released.
▪ Submit a comprehensive conceptual site model for both the petroleum release and the PFAS contamination.
▪ Complete site assessment activities, and submit and receive DEQ approval for a corrective action plan and proposed schedule for implementation.
▪ Conduct monthly sampling of nearby surface water for petroleum, pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, Volatile Organic Compounds, total lead and PFAS at locations determined by DEQ.
▪ Provide evaluations of Colonial’s leak detection system statewide, provide locations of all pipeline Type-A collar repairs within North Carolina and remove or replace them with approved alternatives if necessary. Colonial has cited corrosion related to a Type-A sleeve repair as the cause of the Huntersville release.
