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Gasoline May Have Entered River Near Scammon Bay When Owner Pumped Water From Tank Farm

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Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation

How gasoline escaped the community of Scammon Bay’s tank farm and entered a nearby river may be due to an oversight during a routine operation. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation reports that as the owners were removing water that had collected around the tanks, leaked gasoline might have been pumped out with it.

The owners of the tank farm, the Askinuk Corporation, are not commenting on the incident at this time. A total of 7,000 gallons of gasoline leaked from one tank, but how much entered the river is unknown. Lisa Krebs-Barsis with the DEC says that the tank farm has multiple layers of defense to prevent fuel from escaping.

A 4-foot-high berm surrounds the tank farm. There is a second berm to catch any fuel that might breach the first berm a few feet away, and the entire area is lined, forming what are called “containment zones.” Water often collects in these zones and has to be pumped out. Krebs-Barsis calls this a “totally normal operation.” But during a recent undertaking, gasoline appears to have been pumped out along with the water. That water flows into a creek and then into the Kun River.

The DEC, along with the U.S. Coast Guard, is working to confirm all this information and plans to fly to Scammon Bay on Friday to investigate. They did not make their flight to the community on Thursday. In the meantime, the DEC, along with the City of Scammon Bay, is advising people not to do subsistence activities near the contaminated area.

Anna Rose MacArthur served as KYUK's News Director from 2015-2022.