Massive 2014 West Virginia chemical spill was preventable: CSB
An extensive technical analysis conducted by the CSB found that the MCHM tanks were not internally inspected for at least ten years before the January 2014 incident. However, the CSB report notes, since the incident there have been a number of reforms including passage of the state’s Aboveground Storage Tank Act. Among other requirements, the new regulations would have required the tanks at freedom to be surrounded by an adequate secondary containment structure, and require proper maintenance and corrosion prevention, including internal inspections and a certification process.
The CSB’s investigation determined that nationwide water providers have likely not developed programs to determine the location of potential chemical contamination sources, nor plans to respond to incidents such as the one in Charleston, West Virginia.
Supervisory Investigator Johnnie Banks said, “The public deserves and must demand clean, safe drinking water. We want water systems throughout the country to study the valuable lessons learned from our report and act accordingly. We make specific recommendations to a national association to communicate these findings and lessons.”
The CSB report recommends that the American Water Works Association, which represents thousands of water companies, communicate the findings from the CSB report to its members and to emphasize the importance of emergency planning and coordination with other entities to ensure timely notification of the public during contamination emergencies.
The CSB made recommendations to the American Water Works Company, Inc. (AW), which owns water systems in sixteen states according to its website, including West Virginia American Water in Charleston. The CSB said AW should establish nationwide requirements for all of its treatment plants to inventory potentially hazardous chemicals stored in vulnerable water source areas, assessing the dangers and developing contingency plans to respond to contamination events. West Virginia American Water developed such a plan in June 2016 for the Kanawha Valley which the CSB recommends be modeled in the company’s other plants.
The CSB says its report highlights lessons learned and is calling on aboveground storage tank facilities, government officials, drinking water utilities, and public health agencies across the country to follow these recommended best practices in order to prevent similar incidents.
These lessons include:
- Above ground storage tank owners should establish regular inspection and monitoring and coordinate with nearby water utilities and emergency response organizations to ensure that they provide adequate information about their stored chemicals for effective planning in the event of a leak.
- State governments should act immediately to protect source waters and the public from unknown and potentially hazardous chemicals.
- Water utilities should engage with their Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPCs) and/or State Emergency Response Commission (SERC) to obtain Tier II information. The information obtained should be used to identify water intakes that could potentially be at risk of contamination from those chemicals in the event of a spill or release.
- Water utilities should assess the capabilities of their water treatment systems to contain potential leaks for all potential sources of significant contamination within the zone of critical concern.
- Where feasible, water utilities should ensure laboratory testing methods are available to detect the presence or measure the concentration of potential contaminants or classes of contaminants.
- Public health agencies should coordinate with water utilities, emergency response organizations and facilities storing chemicals near drinking water sources
Sutherland said, “The unacceptable chemical contamination of the Charleston, West Virginia drinking water system could have been prevented had the lessons and recommendations in our CSB report been adopted years ago. Public officials and water companies must work diligently to identify potential risks and assure that the public’s access to safe drinking water is protected.”
The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating serious chemical accidents. The Board does not issue citations or fines but does make safety recommendations to plants, industry organizations, labor groups, and regulatory agencies such as OSHA and EPA.
