Chemical spill turns creek blue

July 29, 2010
By Blake Aued | Athens Banner-Herald

A dye that goes into toilet-cleaning chemicals turned Trail Creek bright blue and killed an unknown number of fish today after a fire early Wednesday unleashed various chemicals into the water.

State environmental officials are investigating the fish kill and testing water samples to determine what spilled into the creek after the fire at J&J Chemical in East Athens.

See more of blue Trail Creek.

Dissolved oxygen levels plummeted after the chemical spill, so fish likely suffocated rather than died of poisoning, said Melissa Cummings, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Natural Resources.

The dye is relatively harmless, but other, more dangerous chemicals also may have leaked into Trail Creek, which flows into the North Oconee River at Dudley Park, including methanol, para-dichlorobenzene and a formaldehyde solution, said Ted Jackson, the environmental emergency and radiation program manager for the state Environmental Protection Division.

Methanol is a highly toxic substance that attacks the central nervous system, while the other two compounds are possible carcinogens, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Trail Creek enters the North Oconee River below Athens-Clarke County’s intake, so the spill is not affecting drinking water, utility officials said.

“If you stand around it long enough, you get headaches and nausea,” said Ben Emanuel, the Oconee River projects coordinator for the Altamaha Riverkeeper who was doing independent testing today.

A bystander photographs contaminated water in Trail Creek near downtown Athens today. The blue water appears to be toilet bowl disinfectant that ran off following a Wednesday fire at a North Clarke plant.

Photo credit: David Manning

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