By Dominik Lobkowicz
The above-ground septic lift tank access (left) and below-ground oil fill located behind Medomak Middle School. Rockland-based Martime Energy delivered 2087 gallons of heating oil to the school Feb. 4 and inadvertently pumped it into the septic system, according to Principal Kate Race. (D. Lobkowicz photos) |
Updated Feb. 11 at 2:00 p.m.
The leach field at Medomak Middle School will be dug up and replaced in the coming weeks after over 2000 gallons of heating oil were mistakenly pumped into the school’s septic system on Feb. 4, according to Regional School Unit 40 officials.
Rockland-based Maritime Energy, the company that delivered the oil, is taking responsibility for the situation, according to Maritime Vice President Susan Page.
“We’re taking ownership and we’re going to make it right,” Page said.
According to MMS Principal Kate Race, Maritime delivered 2087 gallons of oil at 1 p.m. on Feb. 4, and inadvertently pumped it into the septic system’s 1000 gallon lift tank.
The lift tank stores liquid from the septic system, and pumps transfer the liquid from there out to the system’s leach field, Race said.
Both the oil fill and lift tank access are located behind the school, and are similar in size and shape. The oil fill is located below ground level, and appears slightly larger in diameter than the above-ground lift tank access.
Page said the delivery driver responsible was filling in for the regular driver for the school’s deliveries, and was confused because the two pipes are both four-inches in diameter and have similar quick-connect fittings.
“When our driver got there … he shoveled like 6 feet of snow to get to this pipe and his intentions were good, and you can see how he was confused with the normal fill pipe, but it’s something that obviously shouldn’t have happened,” Page said.
Page declined to identify the driver, but said “it’s a very experienced driver of ours.”
Maritime does evaluate the site before taking on commercial and large customers like the school, and lists the locations of the fill pipes on the delivery ticket, Page said.
After the issue was discovered, Maritime was back at the school Feb. 5, along with the Department of Environmental Protection, Race said.
A “vac-truck” sucked 785 gallons of liquid out of the lift tank the night of Feb. 5, which was probably predominantly heating oil, according to RSU 40 Facilities and Transportation Director George Bridges.
The gallons of oil not collected by the vac-truck were pumped out into the leach field by the lift tank’s pump, according to Bridges. The 2800-gallon septic tank and the system’s grease trap were checked and were free of oil, he said.
A plan was made Feb. 9 to dig up and replace the school’s leach field and any contaminated soil, Bridges said. Maritime has hired George C. Hall & Sons, of Rockland, who originally installed the leach field, as the general contractor for the work, he said.
Using a ground warmer to thaw the earth, the work is anticipated to start on the end near the school’s well and use an excavator to dig up the leach field, Bridges said.
Soils tests will be performed on-site to determine the extent of any contamination, Bridges said.
“If it comes out negative, at that point they’ll take some more soil samples and go to the lab, but the people on site will go over to a new section,” Bridges said. “If it comes up positive, they’ll keep digging until they get to soil that comes up negative.”
Until the leach field is replaced, Interstate Septic will pump out the school’s septic tank as often as 2 to 3 times a day to ensure no more oil is introduced to the leach field, Page said.
An informational meeting on the situation and the plan to resolve it is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 12 at 6 p.m. at Medomak Middle School.
According to RSU 40 Superintendent Steve Nolan, who will ultimately be responsible for the costs is not yet clear.
“Obviously we’re hoping for little or no financial impact on the district,” Nolan said. “Of course, we have staff committing time to this, but as far as the pumping of the tank, the cleanup of the septic system, all those details, I’m not even sure we’re clear yet what those things are [going to cost].”
Nolan was pleased with how Maritime has handled the issue so far.
“It’s an unfortunate mistake that got us in this situation, and Maritime has been fantastic in their response,” he said.
As of Feb. 6, Karl Wilkins, the acting director of communications for the Department of Environmental Protection, said the environmental impacts of the issue are not yet clear, nor whether Maritime will face any penalties.
“It certainly appears to be totally accidental,” Wilkins said. “The company Maritime has hired, they’re out there, they’re doing what they can. We take all that into consideration.”
The issue with the oil was discovered after school custodian Kim Wellman, anticipating a fuel delivery, went to check the oil level on Feb. 5, according to Waldoboro Fire Chief Paul Smeltzer. Discovering it was still low, Wellman called Maritime, who said they had already delivered the oil, Smeltzer said.
By going up the chain of command with the school district, “the custodial staff that discovered it handled it appropriately, handled it very well,” he said.
Smeltzer said the Waldoboro Town Office provided plans for the school building and its septic system to DEP and Maritime to assist in developing a plan for dealing with the situation.
School was closed Feb. 5 for unrelated reasons – a snow storm – but was back in session Feb. 6.
“Though this occurred yesterday, the professionals agree that school is safe to resume tomorrow, Friday, February 6,” Race said in the message sent to parents the night of Feb. 5. “Our restroom facilities will be up and running as normal but our drinking water will be unavailable until we can confirm the ground water is safe.”
Smeltzer believes it is “perfectly safe” for the students to be in the building, and his biggest concern was over the school’s drinking water, as the school is on a well.
“We’re going to monitor that,” he said.
“It’s very very unlikely that there will be any water contamination because the well is 120 yards uphill,” said Susan Page.
A water sample was taken Feb. 6 and the results were expected the week of Feb. 9.
Drinking water is continuing to be supplied for the students, according to Nolan.
Anyone with questions is encouraged to call the school administration at 832-5028.
