County officials address fuel leak at Mitchell International Airport

February 1, 2012
MILWAUKEE- We now know the source of a week-long fuel leak at Mitchell International Airport.
 
But there are still a lot of unanswered questions Tuesday night.
 
The source is a jet fuel pipeline and officials claim as fuel spills go, this one is a victory.  They've closed the pipe, they're cleaning it up, and airport service wasn't affected.  But, will your wallet be affected when it's all over?
 
A strong odor is what tipped officials off to a fuel spill at the airport.  That was a week and a half ago.  Now, they're narrowing it down to a pipeline that connects to jet fuel tanks on the property.
 
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Chemical leak cleaned up before bigger problems arise

Ferndale
January 13, 2012

Firefighters responded to leaking chemicals at an idle Ferndale business earlier this week that officials said could have caused a massive explosion if ignited.
 
According to Fire Marshal Brian Batten, around 9 a.m. on Jan. 9, Ferndale firefighters were dispatched on a report of noxious fumes emanating from Fermical Inc., a biomedical research facility located at 1360 Hilton Road. Neighbors of the business had smelled the fumes and called 911.
 
Firefighters arrived and discovered that one of the chemical tubs at Fermical was leaking. The tub contained 55-gallon storage drums filled with the chemicals methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) and ethyl acetate.
 
“These particular drums failed because they had sustained water damage and were starting to rust,” Batten explained. “MEK is highly flammable, so this situation could have been much worse than it was. Luckily, no one was harmed, though.”
 
The Fire Department called in the Detroit-based company Marine Pollution Control to clean up the leak.


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Marine Pollution Control Corporation to participate in the Oil in Ice response exercise with the United States Coast Guard and other agencies

For Immediate Release:

January 24, 2012

Detroit, Michigan:  Marine Pollution Control Corporation ("MPC") is participating in the United States Coast Guard’s Research and Development Center's Oil in Ice response exercise in Saint Ignace, Michigan.  The exercise is scheduled to occur beginning on January 23 through 25, 2012.   MPC is providing specialized oil detection and recovery equipment including technologies utilized for the recovery of oil in ice infested water and extreme winter conditions, including skimming operations and insitu burn operations.  The operations will take place from the United States Coast Guard Cutter Hollyhock, as well as from commercial tugs that will be used as vessels of opportunity.

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality will also be involved in the exercise.

MPC was awarded a contract by the United States Coast Guard to participate in the exercise as result of a competitive bid process.

Coast Guard, other environmental response agencies to practice recovering oil from icy water

January 21, 2012

CLEVELAND ― Members of the U.S. Coast Guard, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, oil spill response organizations, Enbridge Energy Partners and several other agencies are scheduled to participate in a unique exercise out of St. Ignace, Mich., Monday through Wednesday, during which several techniques for recovering spilled oil and other hazardous materials from icy waterways will be tested and evaluated.

While the Coast Guard frequently trains for spill recovery throughout the country, this will be the first time the service has practiced such activities in icy water.

Members of the Coast Guard Research and Development Center, based in Groton, Conn., have been studying multiple recovery options for the unique conditions prevalent during Great Lakes winters. The goal of this project will be to evaluate the effectiveness of those options by recovering small amounts of peat moss and oranges, environmentally-friendly oil surrogates, from the icy waters. The results could also be useful for future responses in the Arctic.

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