News Release 067

FAILED VALVE RESULTS IN 6,000-GALLON DIESEL FUEL RELEASE AT ST. FRANCOIS COUNTY BUSINESS

Department of Natural Resources Oversees Cleanup

Volume 36-067

Contact: Larry Archer

(For immediate release)

573-751-3807

JEFFERSON CITY, MO, FEB. 7, 2008 -- A valve on an above-ground storage tank at a Farmington business failed overnight Wednesday, allowing the release of an estimated 6,000 gallons of diesel fuel, according to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

 The department's Environmental Emergency Response section was contacted Thursday morning by David Laut, owner of Ozark Steel Fabricators, Farmington, concerning the loss of fuel from a tank he uses to fuel his fleet of trucks.

Laut reported that an employee had left a valve open on the concrete containment structure Wednesday to allow the drainage of rainwater.  When the storage tank valve failed some time Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, the fuel flowed out of the containment area and into a field owned by Laut. The fuel then migrated past the field and into an intermittent waterway that is a tributary of St. Francis River. The fuel was stopped before reaching the river.

The Department of Natural Resources dispatched an on-scene coordinator from the department's Southeast Regional Office in Poplar Bluff to oversee the cleanup of the release. Laut contracted with Bellon Environmental, St. Louis, to conduct the cleanup.

From July 1, 2006, to June 30, 2007, releases from fuel tanks accounted for 9 percent of the environmental incidents reported to the department. Petroleum products from vehicle accidents as well as fuel tanks accounted for 43 percent of materials released during environmental emergencies.

The department's Environmental Emergency Response section is called to the scene of more than 300 emergencies each year, including fires, traffic accidents, leaking storage tanks and other incidents that could have a negative environmental impact. The department's 24-hour spill line receives more than 1,600 incident reports annually.

To report an environmental emergency, including fuel spills, please the contact spill line at
573-634-2436. For more information, contact the Department of Natural Resources at
800-361-4827 or 573-751-3443, or visit the department's Web page at www.dnr.mo.gov.

For news releases on the Web, visit www.dnr.mo.gov/newsrel. For a complete listing of the department's upcoming meetings, hearings and events, visit the department's online calendar at www.dnr.mo.gov/calendar/search.do.

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