Quick action helped limit risk from oil spill into Paugus Bay

LAKEPORT — An oil spill at an automotive service center prompted the city to shut off its water system intake pumps to perform containment on Paugus Bay Tuesday afternoon.

A large, used oil tank spilled sometime overnight at Meineke Car Care Center on Union Avenue and was apparently discovered when employees arrived to work on Tuesday morning, Water Superintendent Benjamin Crawford said Wednesday morning.

The oil spilled from a 330-gallon drum which had corroded and leaked into a catch basin, making its way through a storm drain and eventually into Lake Winnipesaukee at Paugus Bay, the source of drinking water for the City of Laconia, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services spokesperson Jim Martin said. Water department staff turned off intake pumps around 2 p.m.

“It was a corroded oil tank that caused the spill,” Martin said. “We don’t believe there was any impact to the water intake.”

Martin said this sort of spill can happen as oil drums rust over time, and it is believed the 330-gallon drum was not full when it leaked into the auto shop, where the majority of the spill remained contained from the outset.

“All of those areas are being cleaned up today,” he said. “There’s no further risk of oil going into the lake from the spill.”

Cleanup operations were ongoing on Wednesday afternoon and spill response staff from DES remained on the property. Test results from water samples taken at the pumps would not be available for at least 24 hours. 

The fire department, using a boat, assisted Clean Harbors Environmental of Bow and DES in installing 400 feet of booms and absorbent pads to contain the spill, located relatively near to the city's water intake pumps.

The fire department provided assistance for about an hour Tuesday after receiving notice around 2:30 p.m., Chief Tim Joubert said.

Meineke co-owner Greg Masewic said employees discovered the rusted tank had spilled oil into the auto shop around 7:30 a.m. when they arrived at work Tuesday and notified him of the incident.

“They notified me right away and I notified Clean Harbors right away,” he said Wednesday afternoon. “At the time we thought the spill was contained to the Meineke building. It was just an older tank, it just started to corrode.”

While cleaning up the spill inside the auto shop, he and others noticed some of the oil had slipped into a stream between Meineke and D’Angelo Grilled Sandwiches next door.

The corroded tank will be immediately replaced and containment barrels will be purchased for the oil tanks to prevent any potential spills in the future, he said, and existing leak procedures will be reviewed and reinforced.

“I’ve been in this business for 35-plus years, I’ve never seen it happen before,” Masewic said. “I’m born and raised in New Hampshire and I live on the lake myself. I love the outdoors and the water — I didn’t and couldn’t foresee this and we’re doing everything in our power to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

And state and local officials were working Wednesday afternoon to ensure the water intake pumps did not pull in any contaminants.

“It is not far from the city’s drinking water plant intake,” Martin said Wednesday. “But the spill was relatively small and contained, it didn’t really pose a risk to the water system.”

DES employees were collaborating with the city water department Wednesday to perform testing, looking for any trace of volatile organic compounds or synthetic compounds present in the drinking water supply.

“We were notified [Tuesday] afternoon and shut down the intake pumps,” Crawford said. “We deployed booms to contain the oil back against the shoreline — the majority was contained right there.”

To his knowledge, none of the oil spilled into Paugus Bay had entered the city’s drinking water supply at the plant, Crawford said. Testing performed Wednesday could confirm that later in the week.

The intake pumps to the plant were turned back on at 5 a.m. Wednesday morning. 

“This one in particular, it was a fairly small spill,” Crawford said. 

Crawford said the spill provides an opportunity for businesses and city personnel to learn.

“It’s a huge learning experience for everyone involved,” Crawford said. “A phone call should be made immediately — that is the drinking water supply, this south end is a protected area.”

The Lake Winnipesaukee Association, which received from an anonymous source early Wednesday morning and passed it along to The Daily Sun, issued a statement about the incident.

“As the only drinking water source for the city of Laconia, it is critical that any type of spill in Paugus Bay be reported immediately and remedied with collaboration from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, the Laconia Water Department, and the Department of Public Works. It is critical that shorefront businesses have a response plan in place if contamination on their property occurs to ensure that all necessary parties can respond in a timely manner. Paugus Bay is a critical resource for our community, providing drinking water, supporting diverse ecosystems and recreational activities,” the statement read in part.

“Although efforts are underway to address the spread, we recommend continuous volatile organic compound monitoring of the water quality to assess the impacts. Additionally, we strongly encourage a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the spill to prevent future occurrences. This event is a prime example of why development within a source water protection area needs to be limited and how businesses on the shoreline must implement protective actions to limit pollution to Paugus Bay.”