Heating oil ‘erroneously’ delivered to Pa. home that doesn’t use oil ends up in nearby waterway

Apr 12, 2023

FILE - In this Jan. 2, 2008, file photo, heating oil is delivered to a home in Barre, Vermont. In January 2023, a home in Centre County, Pa., that does not use heating oil erroneously received a delivery of oil that ended up in a nearby waterway. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection DEP is investigating. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot, File)AP

A home in Ferguson Twp., Centre County, that does not use heating oil received a delivery of the fuel that made its way into the sump pump and into a nearby waterway earlier this month.

According to a news release from the township, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection was contacted on Jan. 14 about a "sheen on the surface of a small stream and pools of red-dyed oil" in the township.

"The oil was found to have come from a residential home which erroneously received a delivery of heating oil.

The home no longer used heating oil and the oil was subsequently discharged into the basement where a sump pump then pumped some of the heating oil into an unnamed tributary to Beaver Branch," the township reported.

According to DEP, Beaver Branch is a branch of Spruce Creek. Ferguson Twp. is southwest of State College in the southwest corner of Centre County.

When asked how much oil was in the water, DEP said, "Based on the length of stream impacted, the amount of time and rain since the discharge, and amount still visible in the stream, DEP estimates estimates that 100 gallons or more was discharged."

DEP said it was notified of the spill near Pine Grove Mills on Jan. 14. DEP personnel arrived an hour after receiving the notification at 9:30 a.m.

"DEP personnel arrived on scene at 10:30 [a.m.] and confirmed a sheen was visible at the Wyoming Avenue culvert. DEP installed two booms and traced the sheen up to a small PVC pipe that was later determined to be a sump pump outfall. Oil contaminated household items and a bucket of heating oil was outside the residence at 111 Minnesota Street," DEP said.

DEP said a contractor has been "procured by the responsible party to provide environmental remediation." Cleanup will be done using a vacuum truck in the homeowner's basement and booms and pads on the water.

"At this point the duration of the cleanup is not known but absorbent pads and other mitigating procedures will continue to be utilized to remove any sheen or product. It should be noted that a small amount of oil can cause an easily visible sheen on water," DEP said.

The township said Rock Spring Water Company and State College Borough Water Authority have been notified.

DEP said, however, "There are no local downstream surface drinking water sources." The notification to Rock Spring was done "out of an abundance of caution ..." DEP said it is "requiring additional sampling of these wells."

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