Tidbits from Hacker Creek

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Goat Rock

Just above the Hacker Creek Spill

*Sheriff spokesman, Brenda Godsey says that the owner’s name is not going to be made public until he is charged or there is a warrant for his arrest. However, a warrant is likely to happen. Currently, sheriff deputies are investigating the possibility of an illegal operation. Godsey says, “We will write up the Marijuana grow, submit our case to the DA, and this will likely include a request for a warrant.”

As for the possibility of a environmental charge against the property owner, Godsey emphasizes that while this area is not the province of the Sheriff’s Office, Fish and Game are “all over that.”

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*According to Hazmat inspector for Environmental Health, Larry Lancastor, Northcoast Environmental Construction has hired a geologist to help them with the spill. The diesel is still oozing from the shale into Hacker Creek but the contractor is hopeful that the site is becoming cleaner.

One worrisome possibility is that as the water drops in this dry, windy weather, the pools containing diesel will disappear. The fuel which has been floating on the water will then sink into the rocks. In order to remove that environmental hazard, the creek bed will have to be dug into which is disruptive to the ecosystem.

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*Rumor Squelching: I have been asked about the possibility of a spill above the property in question. Larry Lancaster tells me that Fish and Game walked at least 5 minutes above the diesel puddling and discerned “no sheening.” They took water samples which have not yet been returned but Lancaster fully expects that they will come back “non detecs.”

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*Link to Times Standard Article