City Changes Direction On Used Oil Situation

By Gordon HopkinsAfter previously insisting he did not need to contact the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) about the disposal of 38 55-gallon drums of used oil currently stored in a shed on Fairbury city property, Mayor Spencer Brown is now working with the EPA to locate a company that can dispose of the oil in an EPA-approved manner.“I’m following what the state says to do,” Brown told the FJN on February 2, 2024.However, Brown received an email on January 26, 2024, from Brian Gorman, an Environmental Specialist for NDEE (Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy), reminding Brown that “if PCB’s are over 2 ppm (parts per million) but under 50 ppm, the used oil must be managed as an off-specification used oil.”PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) are highly carcinogenic chemical compounds, formerly used in industrial and consumer products, whose production was banned in the United States by the Toxic Substances Control Act in 1976.Gorman also noted, “EPA enforces the TSCA (Toxic Substances Control Act) program in Nebraska.”An analysis of the oil completed October 24, 2022, indicated PCB levels in the oil are 4.01 ppm.Although the most recent chemical analysis was only obtained by the city on January 26 of this year, Mayor Brown was previously aware of the PCB levels a year ago. On January 31, 2023, the mayor told FJN, “The oil was tested and had a concentration of 4ppm PCB’s which is well under the EPA guideline of 50ppm for oil.”The city’s reversal of course comes after contact with the EPA. On February 5, 2024, the EPA provided the city with a list of EPA approved disposal and transport facilities.Mayor Brown advised FJN that disposal of the oil is, “In a holding pattern until a disposal company gets back to me.”

Mary Anne Nutsch

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