When The South Platte at the confluence of Sand Creek smelled like a loosely managed gas station, it wasn’t a government official or refinery worker to report an oil leak, it was a local fisherman. Surely there is something wrong with the picture? Maybe it is just wishful thinking that a refinery located along Denver’s major water supply would have a little tighter grip on what is going on with their chemicals…
After about a weak since officials were made aware of the leak, the precise location of the leak has yet to be determined. What has been decided, however, is that water tests at Sand Creek and The South Platte have found Benzene, a carcinogenic chemical associate with oil, at levels in excess of safety standards, moreover well beyond levels associated with safe drinking water.
Despite the severity of the spill, you probably have not been hearing much about the issue. Suncor and Officials have done their best to see that the spill stays quiet. At a time when Congress is making key decisions about processes concerning refinery safety processes, issues like this must be highlighted. Examples like the Suncor Spill should perhaps highlight that when starting a tar sands infrastructure along a major water source, environmental review should maybe be a part of that process. Accidents do happen, but in a case like this it is obvious that Suncor was blind and ill prepared to detect and manage their mistake.
And for the fly fisherman prospecting for Carp on that Sunday - Thanks for the heads up!
Tight Lines,
Tyler Bowman
The Flyfisher Group
tyler@theflyfisher.com
