U.S. Steel
Corporation (USS) is saying that the “sheen” observed at one of its Midwest
Plant outfalls in the Burns Waterway on Friday, Sept. 6, did not pose a risk
to either the public or the environment.
But USS did not
identify the substance specifically or the source of the substance, in an
update released after deadline on Monday.
The statement in
full:
“On Friday, Sept.
6, we detected a light, intermittent oil sheen at one of the outfalls at our
Midwest Plant. We promptly notified local and regulatory authorities.
“The sheen was
contained by measures enacted immediately and dissipated Friday evening.
Testing results received today revealed that all levels were below our
permitted discharge limits.
“Safety and
environmental stewardship are our top priorities, and we continue to
investigate the cause of the sheen.
“The matter did not
result in any risk of harm to the public or the environment.”
Late on Friday, the
Indiana American Water Company (IAWC) took its Ogden Dunes treatment
facility out of service in response to the sheen--what it called a “chemical
spill”--although IAWC did say on Monday morning that continuous real-time
testing has shown “no impact on the raw water parameters we are monitoring
for at this location or on our finished water quality.”
The Indiana
Department of Environmental Management, for its part, has so far released no
statement on the incident.
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