 The Columbus Dispatch
Shannon Beatty Thousands of fish and mussels have been killed and more are in danger as dumped chemicals creep down Big Darby Creek in Union County. Since last week, an estimated 20,000 gallons of runoff from cornstalks and other fodder has reached the creek, state officials said. It came from Darby Creek Agricultural Enterprises in Milford Center -- 22 miles northwest of Columbus -- said Steven Ver, a wildlife investigator for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The mass of reddish-brown liquid has moved about 4 miles down the creek, leaving fish and mussels suffocating in its wake. More than 17,000 dead fish have been counted; more could be buried on the creek bottom or in vegetation, Ver said. The agency can't say how far the pollution will spread. "We couldn't even see the bottom Sunday," he said. "It had to be very concentrated to cause this effect." No one from the company was available to comment yesterday. The runoff came from stored livestock feed produced by the company, state officials said. When water hits the green fodder, it ferments, creating a liquid "like mash whiskey," said John Davis of the Natural Resources Department. A hose in the company's basement drained the substance into a storm sewer that carried it into the creek about a quarter-mile from the plant, he said. More investigation will be needed to determine what led to the pollution, Davis said. No charges have been filed, but the incident could result in criminal or civil action by the state, he said. Cleanup and containment will be difficult if not impossible, Davis said. He contrasted the mix with an oil spill, in which the pollutant can be swabbed off the water's surface. "This is just like a cocktail," Davis said. "It mixes right into the water." Agents today will attempt to aerate the water, throwing it into the air with a pump borrowed from a farmer, Ver said. Compressed air also will be injected into the creek. But the best option would be a large supply of fresh water to dilute or flush out the chemical, he said. "We really need a good, heavy, 2- inch rain," he said. The Natural Resources Department is concerned the spill will move to the habitat of the spotted darter, an endangered fish that lives in the creek near Columbus. Natural Resources and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency investigators learned about the problem Thursday night, Davis said. When agents went to investigate calls from concerned neighbors, the drainage had stopped. They could not pinpoint the source. A second report came Saturday around 6 p.m. This time, investigators followed the acrid smell and reddish-brown trail to the sewer. The final remnants of runoff were washed out of the drain yesterday by A&B; Sanitation, a company hired by Darby Creek Agricultural Enterprises, Davis said. On the riverbank yesterday, Ver watched helplessly as a chain pickerel paddled on its side near the surface of the rust-colored creek. "With the size of the river and the size of the spill, it's going to be really hard on the wildlife," he said. "It could take two or three years to get back to what we're used to seeing." Back to Ohio state page
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