(Spokane television station KXLY posted the following story on its website on February 18.)
SPOKANE, Wash. — Local politicians and Idaho’s Department of Environmental Quality are asking the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company to shut down its leaking refueling station, but the railroad continued to operate the facility Thursday.
A group of Idaho legislators has joined Kootenai County Commissioners in demanding the railroad suspend all fueling operations at its six-month-old depot, which was built over the major drinking water supply for the Spokane metropolitan area. Late Thursday, the DEQ sent a letter to the railroad, asking it to suspend refueling and related activities there until certain measures are taken, including locating and repairing failed containment layers; demonstrating there has been no release of petroleum to the soils and groundwater beneath the refueling platform; demonstrating the integrity of the third containment layer at the platform, or repairing it if it had been breached; and inspecting and verifying the integrity of the containment layers beneath the off-loading platform and the tank farm.
Fuel-tainted wastewater was found Monday leaking from the refueling platform. A similar wastewater leak was discovered nearly two months ago and has already reached the aquifer 160 feet beneath the site.
Four state legislators from Kootenai County on Wednesday called for a shutdown until all problems are corrected.
The railroad has shut down one of the three fueling systems, but is continuing to operate two others at the facility.