A large diesel fuel storage tank located at a BP storage facility in Dubuque County, Iowa has leaked potentially thousands of gallons of diesel into Catfish Creek. Tom McCarthy, an environmental specialist with Iowa DNR, did confirm that approximately 20,500 gallons of diesel is unaccounted for. At this time it is unknown exactly how much of that actually made it into the water.
Five booms have been deployed and will be used to control the water flow on the creek and aid in the collection of the spilled diesel.
Mr. McCarthy said “They’ve contained most of the spill on site. Some of the spill did go into Catfish Creek….[It] could affect mainly birds and mammals. We don’t see a lot of impact from diesel spills into streams on the fish. But we’re just looking to make sure that everything’s cleaned up.”
