Oil company responsible for Highland spill offers compensation as cleanup continues

The company whose pipeline has leaked more than 4,200 gallons of crude oil into streams near Highland has apologized for the inconvenience and is accepting claims by anyone who believes they have been affected by it.

Plains All-American Pipeline “sincerely regrets this incident has occurred” and apologized in a statement issued Sunday night for the inconvenience and impact to the environment. The statement indicated that 2,700 booms have been deployed to prevent oil from spreading any further from the pipeline break on Little Silver Creek, as well as nine vacuum trucks, 17 response vessels, an observation helicopter and more than 210 workers.

The response team is monitoring the containment booms, which are located along the creek and in the northern portion of Silver Lake as well as around the inlet for the water treatment facility, which provides drinking water to Highland and other towns in the vicinity. On Monday afternoon, crews were hauling bags of absorbent material out of the creek, which winds past homes and farmland to feed into the lake.

For the time being, Silver Lake is closed for recreational purposes. Baumann Road was closed Friday from Pocahontas Road to Krause Road by the Madison County Sheriff’s Department to make access easier for recovery crews.

The company has set up a website at www.mp29response.com to provide updates and information, as well as accepting claims from people who believe they have been affected and wish to be compensated. People who have been affected are asked to call a toll-free number, 888-557-5216, to file a claim. Plains is working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies to contain the spill, according to the statement.

Spokesmen for state and federal EPA could not be reached for comment Monday, and workers at the cleanup sites on Silver Creek referred comments to Plains All-American. Local officials say they are satisfied with the company’s response so far, both in Highland, which is most affected by the Silver Lake water supply, and in Grantfork, which is closest to the site of the break. About half of Grantfork gets its water from Highland, and the other half from Bond-Madison Water.

“They’ve been keeping us informed what the progress is for the cleanup,” said Steve Brendel, mayor of Grantfork. Brendel said there have been a few residents whose properties have been impacted. “The good news is, (Plains All-American) has talked with them directly, and they’re making sure everything is taken care of.”

Joe Gillespie, director of public works for Highland, said the testing is being monitored by the U.S. EPA and all the tests so far have come back negative for any hydrocarbons. “Our operations have not changed,” he said. “The most important thing is that the city of Highland’s water is safe to be consumed. There shouldn’t be any concerns. I feel comfortable that all the testing is being done.”

Brendel said he is confident that the booms have caught the oil and kept it from getting into the main body of the lake. “But we know it’s not going to be a simple process,” he said. “It’s some rough terrain out there.”

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said his staff is in contact with Highland Mayor Joe Michaelis and the emergency management agencies regarding the spill.

“I’m concerned about the proximity of the oil to Highland’s drinking water source,” Durbin said. “I will continue to monitor the situation and make sure that every necessary federal resource is made available to Highland.”

The spill was caused by a blown fitting on a 20-inch pipe that carried crude oil through the region. A resident saw oil being released from the Pocahontas pump station at about 7:45 a.m. Friday. The pipeline was shut down shortly thereafter. Plains All-American has said the kind of oil released was Suncor Synthetic H, an upgraded bottomless sour synthetic blend. Synthetic crude oil is a product that has already gone through some refining for shipping purposes, according to Plains All-American, and the heavy portion of the oil has been removed.

The latest updates from Plains All-American state that no oil sheen has yet been seen on Silver Lake, and testing continues both in the lake and at the inlet valves for Highland’s water treatment plant.

This is the latest headache for Plains All-American, which settled a multi-million-dollar case with the U.S. EPA a few years ago, after nearly 275,000 gallons of oil were released in 10 separate incidents within three years in Texas, Kansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. The causes were usually cracks or damage to the pipes or internal corrosion. As a condition of the settlement, Plains was to conduct weekly aerial surveys of its pipelines and add computerized leak detection systems on 110 sections of pipelines. Plains was required to make $41 million in improvements and pay $3.25 million in civil penalties.

But just last month, another pipeline break in California spread oil over 100 miles to Los Angeles beaches. The full impact of that spill is not yet known, but is estimated at about 101,000 gallons, according to news reports.

Contact reporter Elizabeth Donald at edonald@bnd.com or 618-239-2507.

This story was originally published July 13, 2015 at 12:05 PM with the headline "Oil company responsible for Highland spill offers compensation as cleanup continues."