River contaminated due to Buncefield blaze (From Watford Observer)

River contaminated due to Buncefield blaze

11:00am Saturday 1st July 2006 in News

CONTAMINATED water, which had been used to clean up the Buncefield fuel depot blaze, has leaked into the River Colne.

It is believed 800,000 litres of the clean-up water escaped from a storage tank at Thames Water's Blackbirds sewage treatment works in Blackbirds Lane, Radlett, at the beginning of last week.

MP for South West Herts, David Gauke, said: "While it appears no serious damage has been done, it is concerning that contaminated water was able to leak into the River Colne.

"It is essential that all of the water used to quench Buncefield is disposed of safely and efficiently as soon as possible, to prevent any more accidents like this happening."

Shortly after notification, the Environment Agency began a sampling programme along the length of the river to determine how polluted it had become. The results showed traces of chemicals in the river water, but not dangerous amounts.

Three Valleys Water Company does not take water from the River Colne for drinking supplies, but has been informed of the incident.

A representative from the Environment Agency said that they believe the contaminated water was pumped through the sewage treatment works, which may have removed a large amount of the contamination.

The agency's staff have not discovered evidence of any impact on the fish, or other fauna within the river, so far, but have said they will continue to investigate. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of the leak.

More firewater is being held at Maple Lodge sewage works in Denham Way, Maple Cross, and leader of Three Rivers District Council, Ann Shaw, has been calling for the safe disposal of it since January.

She said: "This is very alarming news and it is vital that the Environment Agency is open with local residents about the impact the pollution may have.

"Presumably, if the cause has not yet been identified, there is the possiblity the leaking could continue. Everybody involved must take swift action to resolve the situation."

Oil companies Hertfordshire Oil Storage Limited and British Pipelines Agency are responsible for finding a safe and environmentally sound solution to the 26 million litres of firewater stored since the explosion on December 11 last year. So far no preferred disposal option has been submitted.

County councillor for the Green party Steve Rackett said that the accident should not come as a surprise to anybody.

He said: "We have been concerned for some time because, despite the fire happening months ago, there doesn't appear to be any clear plan for the disposal, and the sites being used in Radlett and Maple Cross are obviously not appropriate for long-term storage of dangerous chemicals. "The companies storing the water have been warned, so this should not come as a surprise to anyone who knows about storage of chemicals." At the time of going to press, a representative from Thames Valley was unavailable for comment.