Fuel seeping into wastewater plant at base By Associated Press, 4/21/2000 18:40 FALMOUTH, Mass. (AP) Authorities say they don't know the source of the thousands of gallons of fuel that contaminated a sewage treatment plant at the Massachusetts Military Reservation.

About 6,000 gallons of a fuel substance flowed into the plant at Otis Air National Guard Base beginning Wednesday. The flow increased dramatically Thursday before slowing Friday.

The fuel has been confined to the sewer system and has not polluted any groundwater, but officials still aren't sure where the fuel is coming from, said Maj. Margaret Quenneville, a spokeswoman for the 102nd Fighter Wing.

''All of the manholes have come up clean. The oil-water separators have come up clean,'' she said. ''There's no logical answer to this yet.''

''We're very frustrated,'' she said.

Base engineers and state and federal officials are investigating.

The base includes Camp Edwards, Otis Air National Guard Base and a Coast Guard air station. Last year, the state took over 15,000 acres on the base because of pollution problems stemming from old military activities there. The EPA in 1997 restricted National Guard training activities at the reservation.

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/112/region/Fuel_seeping_into_wastewater_p:.shtml

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), April 22, 2000

Answers

The plot thickens. Notice how so many more stories are creeping into the news about not knowing the source. For instance: we are having cases of dead birds and fish everywhere now, but nobody knows why.

Do you suppose technical problems, causing pipeline leaks, might have something to do with it?

-- Uncle Fred (dogboy45@bigfoot.com), April 22, 2000.