The Big Spill - Part II

OK so if you haven't read the last post here then you should do so now. Here's an update about the day after on the pipeline.

So we're out on the north side of the Partridge River doing our thing, and I start digging with my soil auger. It's kinda flood plainish, and a remnant of melting from the last glaciation. Lots of sand surrounding the river. I get through about 18 inches of light brown sand and then pull out some black sandy loam. This is unusual, especially in a floodplain. I take a piece to see what it feels like. Feels sticky. Hrm...smells like petroleum. Hrm...sand is not supposed to be sticky and smell like petroleum.


Since this is mostly nerd talk anyways, I'll go ahead and say to any soil scientist that that's no B horizon. (Now I'll go twitch in the corner after realizing I said that) So we reported that we found an oil leak. We don't know the history of the area, maybe it was an old spill that they covered up years ago, who knows. But oil outside of the pipe where it's supposed to be seems to be becoming a trend these days...I'll keep everybody posted about the outcome.