Federal environmental authorities have temporarily paused shipments of contaminated waste from the East Palestine train derailment to Texas. News of the order was delivered by Debra Shore of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on February 25, according to NBC 5 DFW.
The Dallas Express previously reported that 500,000 gallons of toxic wastewater used to extinguish the fire from the February 3 Ohio train derailment had already been transported to Texas.
Some of the liquid waste that has already left the disaster site in East Palestine is expected to be disposed of at a licensed hazardous waste treatment and disposal facility in Texas. However, no additional shipments will be accepted, according to the Ohio governor’s office.
The governor’s office also says 20 truckloads of hazardous waste have been removed from the disaster site. That equates to roughly 280 tons.
Contaminated soil filling 15 trucks was also removed and disposed of at a facility in Michigan, while five truckloads were ultimately returned to East Palestine.
“Currently, about 102,000 gallons of liquid waste and 4,500 cubic yards of solid waste remain in storage on site in East Palestine, not including the five truckloads returned to the village. … Additional solid and liquid wastes are being generated as the cleanup progresses,” the Ohio governor’s office announced, per NBC 5.
“Everyone wants this contamination gone from the community. They don’t want the worry, and they don’t want the smell. We owe it to the people of East Palestine to move it out of the community as quickly as possible,” Shore said, according to NBC 5.
While railroad operator Norfolk Southern was initially responsible for managing and coordinating the toxic waste disposal, the EPA has since requested that cleanup plans be coordinated and subject to oversight from the agency.
Shore says residents in multiple states have raised concerns with officials about transporting the toxic liquids over long distances, prompting reviews of “the appropriate permitted and certified sites to take the waste.”
According to Shore, the “EPA will ensure that all waste is disposed of in a safe and lawful manner at EPA-certified facilities to prevent further release of hazardous substances and impacts to communities,” per NBC 5.