Company responsible for Barberton spill says it's committed to Tuscarawas River cleanup

Derek Kreider, Akron Beacon Journal
Updated ·3 min read
Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, looks over a boom in the Tuscarawas River from on a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton.
Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, looks over a boom in the Tuscarawas River from on a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton.

George Bower, vice president of risk management with Noble Oil Services, says that whenever anyone asks him how long it will take to clean up an oil spill he tells them, "until it's done."

While a key segment of Noble's business is cleaning a range of industrial facilities and spills — recycling the oil afterward — Bower has spent the last week helping to manage his own company's spill into the Tuscarawas River in Barberton. The company said Thursday that it could complete its cleanup sometime this weekend.

A boon along the shoreline of the Tuscarawas River where the oil spill occurred is seen from on a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton.
A boon along the shoreline of the Tuscarawas River where the oil spill occurred is seen from on a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton.

More: Barberton mayor says city, agencies 'working hand in hand' to limit oil spill's impact

"Our business is to help people when these things happen and to recycle oil, not to have this problem ourselves," Bower said. "For me, one of my priorities will be making sure that as a company, we look at what we did here, why this problem occurred, and how we eliminate these kind of discharges in the future."

According to Noble's website, the 40 year-old Sanford, North Carolina-based company is the "largest privately held used oil services recycling company in the United States and serves 12 states throughout the eastern part of the country."

Noble was transferring used oil from a tanker truck to a rail car at a property on Snyder Avenue last Wednesday when the hose connecting the truck to the train car either broke or disconnected, causing it to spill into a storm drain that empties into the Tuscarawas River at a point south of the Wolf Creek Trailhead of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail.

Ohio Environmental Protection Agency representative Dina Pierce said the spill did not contaminate Barberton's drinking water, which is drawn from north of the site along the south-flowing river.

Barberton Mayor William Judge said the city had been in contact with several downstream communities. Based on the information he has received, he said, he has no reason to believe they have been adversely affected.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has been overseeing the cleanup effort; various agencies, including the Barberton Fire Department, have assisted since the spill since was reported last week. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has helped to rescue wildlife affected by the spill.

Environmental contractors EnviroServe and Eco-Maxx Fluid have been working to clean up the spill as well, using simplex booms, vacuum trucks, absorbent pads and specialized sprays to capture the oil and minimize its impact.

A boom is seen in the Tuscarawas River from a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton. Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, explained that the darkened area on the boom is oil that has been absorbed from the river. The booms get changed out by clean up crews.
A boom is seen in the Tuscarawas River from a bridge on Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail near Wolf Creek Trailhead in Barberton. Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, explained that the darkened area on the boom is oil that has been absorbed from the river. The booms get changed out by clean up crews.

Matt Gudorf, president of Eco-Maxx, said crews could wrap up their active cleanup effort as soon as Friday evening, but the booms will likely remain in place until the Ohio EPA gives the go-ahead for removal.

An Ohio EPA spokeswoman said earlier this week that Noble will be held responsible for cleanup costs, but any penalties related to the spill would be decided at a later date.

Bower, who spoke Wednesday and Thursday from Barberton, said roughly a dozen people were on the river conducting spot cleanups. Crews also have also been using drones to identify hard-to-reach areas along the river that need to be addressed.

Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, looks at the last boom on the river from a bridge on Center Road over the Tuscarawas River in New Franklin Village. The boom is the 3.9 miles downriver from the site of the spill.
Matthew Gudorf, president and COO of Eco-Maxx, looks at the last boom on the river from a bridge on Center Road over the Tuscarawas River in New Franklin Village. The boom is the 3.9 miles downriver from the site of the spill.

It's still unclear how much oil entered the river, he said, but the company is working to determine that amount. He reiterated that the first priority is remediation.

"We are here until it's cleaned up," Bower said.

Contact reporter Derek Kreider at DKreider@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Noble Oil Services pledges to help at spill site until cleanup is done