Enbridge, state regulators face scrutiny over Jefferson County oil spill

State regulators say nearby wells and waterways have so far not been impacted by around 70,000 gallons of oil that spilled from Enbridge’s system in Jefferson County as the company and regulators face scrutiny over their response.

The spill is the company’s largest in Wisconsin since roughly 50,000 gallons spilled from Enbridge’s Line 14 pipeline in Adams County in 2012.

On Nov. 11, Enbridge reported a spill from a valve leaking below the ground at the Line 6 pump station in the town of Oakland. The pipeline runs 465 miles from Superior to Griffith, Indiana. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said early information indicates damage is confined to Enbridge’s property, noting four perimeter wells at the site have not been impacted at this time.

Trevor Nobile, deputy director of the agency’s remediation and redevelopment program, said sampling also shows a nearby wetland area, unnamed creek and Lake Ripley have not been impacted.

“Those do not have any signs of impacts at this time, based on the information collected,” Nobile said. “There were also two private wells…that actually have been already sampled and did not have any impacts at this time.”

The DNR met with Enbridge Thursday and will meet with the company on a regular basis to monitor the spill. The agency is also conducting regular site visits. Nobile said the company has so far removed 2,912 tons of soil, and it’s installed 29 temporary monitoring wells to monitor impacts to groundwater.

Nobile said it’s possible the spill amount could be revised again as Enbridge continues its investigation. The spill was originally reported to be around 2 gallons. Enbridge revised its spill estimate on Nov. 14 to 126 gallons and initiated a groundwater and soil investigation on Dec. 10. Two days later, the company notified the DNR that the spill had grown to 69,300 gallons.

“We do receive hundreds of spill notifications a year. It is not uncommon to revise estimated spill volumes, either increasing or they can also decrease,” Nobile said.

DNR, Enbridge criticized over delays in notifying public of spill

Environmental groups like Midwest Environmental Advocates and Sierra Club have criticized the DNR for not being more transparent about the spill and issuing state permits for Enbridge’s proposed Line 5 reroute just days later. They have noted a leak detection system on Line 6 failed to detect the spill. Nobile said state laws don’t require polluters to notify the public of spills.

“DNR and Enbridge need to be much more transparent, offer many more updates, to make sure that the people in the area who are impacted can safely drink water and do what they need to do,” said Elizabeth Ward, director of Sierra Club Wisconsin. “I think that going forward DNR needs to be much more mindful of Enbridge’s track record and be more proactive when Enbridge announces a spill and consider this track record when granting any permits.”

The company previously delayed reporting a spill for more than a year on its Line 13 pipeline in Fort Atkinson, which remains an active cleanup.

So far, the incident is estimated to cost nearly $1.1 million in emergency response and repairs. Enbridge has recovered about 60 percent of the spill through excavation. Other remediation efforts may be needed to reach contaminated soil as the spill has migrated underneath the pump station, according to Paul Eberth, director of Midwest operations for Enbridge.

“Pipelines remain the safest mode of transporting crude oil. There was a release here. No release is acceptable, but the safety mechanisms in place at this pump station worked as designed,” Eberth said, noting a visual inspection as part of their leak detection system identified the spill. “No impacts occurred off our property to environmental resources or anyone’s drinking water resources.”

If the spill had been bigger at the outset, Nobile said that likely would’ve triggered the agency to notify the public and coordinate more closely with local officials.

“In this case, the initial discharge based on the information and the location – it didn’t warrant that level of notification,” Nobile said.

When spills are reported, Nobile said multiple agencies are notified that include the Environmental Protection Agency and Wisconsin Emergency Management. The initial notification of the spill also went to Jefferson County Emergency Management.

Laura Payne, town of Oakland board chair, told WPR she first learned of the spill last Friday. She declined to comment further. In a press release, the town said Payne would work with the DNR, Jefferson County and Enbridge to ensure the spill is properly addressed.

“As more details unfold, the Town of Oakland will update our residents through the town’s website,” the release  states. “As always, safety will remain the Town’s priority.”

The Jefferson County Health Department is recommending that residents who live nearby the spill monitor their water for discoloration and odor. The town said concerned residents should reach out to the DNR if they want to test their wells, which is estimated to cost $200.

Both Enbridge and the DNR said sampling shows impacts to groundwater are so far confined to Enbridge’s property. As more information comes to light, Nobile said the state would evaluate next steps and any potential enforcement actions or penalties.

The spill has heightened safety concerns as Enbridge seeks to reroute its Line 5 pipeline around the Bad River tribe’s reservation. The project would cross 186 waterways and disturb around 101 acres of wetlands.

Enbridge previously violated permits and water quality standards when it built parallel pipelines across 14 counties in 2007 and 2008. In 2008, the Wisconsin Department of Justice reached a $1.1 million settlement for more than 100 environmental violations that caused harm to wetlands and waterways.

The company’s largest spills in Wisconsin include nearly 202,000 gallons that were released in Rusk County in 2007. In 2003, around 189,000 gallons of oil also spilled at the company’s terminal in Superior, including about 19,000 gallons that were released onto the frozen Nemadji River.