Riverkeeper: Spill Investigated by Riverkeeper Leads to Charges & Arrest
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 1, 2008
2:54 PM
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CONTACT: Riverkeeper
Renee Cho, Riverkeeper
914-478-4501 x 239
rcho@riverkeeper.org
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Spill Investigated by Riverkeeper Leads to Charges & Arrest
Criminal Pollution Charges Brought Against Metro North
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TARRYTOWN, NEW YORK - May 1 - Today, Westchester County Police Director of Environmental Security Ron Gatto brought criminal negligence charges against Metro North Commuter Railroad Company and arrested Metro North’s Assistant Director of Environmental Compliance and Services for violating New York Environmental Conservation Law section 71-2711(1) “Endangering Public Health, Safety, or the Environment” in the fourth degree, a class “A” misdemeanor.
The charges and arrest stem from Riverkeeper’s investigation into the March 29, 2008 spill of more than 17,000 gallons of diesel fuel at Metro North’s Harmon Yard facility in Croton-on-Hudson, New York. A March 31, 2008 report through Riverkeeper’s pollution Watchdog Program revealed the spill at the Harmon yard refueling pump house. Riverkeeper determined that Metro North had only reported a five (5) gallon spill to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), a discrepancy that suggests an attempt to avoid liability associated with a much larger pollution event. Following its investigation, Riverkeeper reported the spill to Director Gatto and the DEC.
“The arrest and charges against Metro North demonstrate that Westchester County is determined to hold the government entity accountable for its flagrant violation of the law,” said Riverkeeper Investigator Josh Verleun. “Polluters who negligently despoil our environment then deliberately flout important reporting and environmental protection requirements must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The charges filed against Metro North arise out of the deliberate disconnection of a spill containment system at a Metro North pump house during construction at the Harmon Yards facility. The spill occurred when a coupler that was part of the refueling system ruptured. Fuel which normally would have gone through a floor grate and been captured by the installed spill prevention system instead flowed into the ground through a system pipe that had been cut by contractors working at the site. Metro North was aware that the pipe that had been disconnected was a critical part of a mandated spill containment system, yet failed to remedy the situation.
Following Riverkeeper’s report, Metro North began an immediate cleanup under the supervision of the DEC. Thus far, according to a Village of Croton-on-Hudson E-Notice, more than 14,000 gallons of diesel have been recovered from the ground.
Riverkeeper has a long history of environmental enforcement at the Harmon Yards facility. In 1968 Riverkeeper discovered a three-foot-wide pipe discharging diesel waste into the Croton River when the yards were operated by the Penn Central Railroad. More recently, Riverkeeper has been investigating the seepage of petroleum into the Croton River from the Harmon Yards shoreline.
Riverkeeper is a member-supported, nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to safeguarding the Hudson River and the watershed areas that provide drinking water to New York City. For more information, please visit www.riverkeeper.org.
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