Newsletter: East Palestine Train Derailment Response, 3-21-2023
Newsletter serving Serving East Palestine, Negley, Darlington, and surrounding communities
On this page:
Progress Made
EPA and Norfolk Southern contractors continue to take soil samples at agricultural, commercial, recreational, and residential properties in both Ohio and Pennsylvania. To date, 97 properties have been sampled. This soil sampling effort will help identify if contaminants, including semi-volatile organic compounds and dioxins, are present and may have been caused by the train derailment. Preliminary soil sample results are coming back from the laboratory – this information will be shared with property owners and the public after quality control checks are complete.
Technical Assistance Program to the Village of East Palestine
Last week, EPA entered into an agreement with the village of East Palestine to provide the community access to technical assistance through EPA’s national Technical Assistance Services for Communities program. The goal of the program is to provide science resources to the community at no cost to help translate and interpret the science, regulations, and environmental policies that surround the train derailment emergency and response efforts.
The Week Ahead
At the Derailment Site
- Increased truck traffic along designated trucking routes
- Taggart street is still closed to the public
- Continued excavation and construction work at the site
- Trucks continue to take soil off site
- Two street sweepers will continue around truck traffic and crews continue to clean trucks before leaving the site
In the Greater Community
- Air monitoring at 23 locations around the community
- EPA’s Trace Atmospheric Gas Analyzer (TAGA) mobile laboratory will continue to sample
- Soil sampling crews in right of ways:
- Crews made up of 4-5 people wearing high visibility safety vests and scooping soil into jars
- If your property is nearby the sampling area and the sampling crew sees signs of soot or ash a member of the sampling team may ask to sample your property
- Creek agitation and aeration will continue
Top 3 Questions of the Week
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Can I plant my vegetable garden and/or farm field?
There is no reason to believe that the particles in the smoke produced from the train derailment fire contain substances at levels of concern on residential, recreational, or agricultural properties. As an extra step, EPA is directing that soil sampling be conducted in areas most impacted by smoke and particles…
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Do I need to do anything to ensure my pool is safe?
There is no current evidence of aerial deposition from the derailment that would impact pools, however ongoing soil sampling and surface water sampling will assist in further verifying the status of aerial deposition. Following these activities, messaging on private pools will be updated as necessary.
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Can we use our football field? What about cross country running?
In addition to our overall guidance about soil use and safety, part of the soil sampling plan has been targeted toward recreational sites. If any results indicate a concern, the public will be informed. At this point, there are no concerns with outdoor activities or sports, except for inside Sulfur…