19K litres of diesel spilled near Valemount

By Abigail Popple, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, RMG

A bulk fuel transport truck involved in a motor vehicle incident on March 21st spilled roughly 19,000 litres of diesel about 18 kilometres south of Valemount, according to the Ministry of Environment and Parks.

Two Environmental Emergency Response Officers arrived on-site the day of the crash, and the responsible person hired a response contractor to visit the site, the Ministry’s web page about the event says. The transport truck and both of its tank trailers were damaged in the incident. Diesel spilled from the rear tank trailer, but responders did not find a spill from the other tank trailer.

The damaged truck and trailers were removed from the site on March 23rd. Additionally, the contractor hired by the responsible person took soil samples and made an assessment on the spill’s environmental impact the day after the incident. The contractor is currently developing a remediation plan, the Ministry says.

According to the web page about the incident, no impacts to waterways have been identified. The Ministry will continue to monitor response and cleanup activities but does not anticipate making further updates to the web page.