Last week, I joined Fire Marshall Jim McGuire by Queen Anne Creek where he was monitoring booms that had been put in place to soak up diesel fuel or home heating oil that had been dumped in a storm water drain on Queen Lily Road in Quincy Hollow.
Jim estimated that about 15 gallons of the oil had been illegally dumped down the drain and the boom lines had been set up to soak up the substance, most of which floats to the surface. Unfortunately, some of the oil residue can settle on the bottom, coating the substrate and whatever organisms live there, causing physiological stress to fish and other wildlife. Studies have shown that it takes up to 20 years for an aquatic environment to return to a healthy condition.
Closer to home, as Jim pointed out, this is where our children play or fish. As I mentioned during our discussion, a person who would dump waste oil on land or in storm drains is first and foremost lazy. There are dozens of locations throughout the area where it can be disposed of free of charge. It probably wouldn't take much more of an effort to deliver it to one of these locations that it took to dump it down a storm drain.
But, this person is worst than merely lazy – clearly he has no conscience or concern for the people of our community. If this person is a resident – and he most likely is – then it is hard to believe he has such little regard for his own back yard.
Middletown Township is offering a $500 reward for information resulting in the arrest and conviction of the person who has been dumping the waste oil at this location. If you have information about this incident or any illegal dumping, you are asked to call 215-750-3812.
This is where we live and it is up to each and everyone of us to keep it clean.
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