April 11,2023

East Palestine

TRAIN DERAILMENT RESPONSE

Serving East Palestine, Negley, Darlington
and surrounding communities

NEWSLETTER

Pumps divert water around the derailment site

PROGRESS MADE

Air Sparging Complete
at the City Park

Airsparging has been completed
within Leslie Run and Sulphur Run
atthe East Palestine City Park. Air
sparging is a common cleanup
technique which involves putting air
into the water so that oxygen and
microbes break down chemicals.

Next steps will include continued
cleaningofthesedimentin both
streams.

Water Diversion is Ongoing
Near the Train Tracks

Water is being pumped around
the derailment site to prevent
contamination from being carried
downstream. Pumps near State
Line Lake carry clean water past the
derailment site to where it is pumped
back into Sulphur Run. The pumping
operation is also protecting the
wetlands area near State Line Lake.

Soil Sampling at
Pennsylvania Farms

EPA Region 3, in coordination with
the PA Department of Environmental
Protection and the PA Department of
Agriculture, completed soil sampling
of 15 priority farms within two to
eight miles of the derailment site.
The sampling was conducted in
coordination with the Lawrence and
Beaver County extension offices. The
preliminary results from this round of
sampling do notshow impacts from
the derailment.

South Track Excavation

The excavation of the south track is
nearing completion and soil waste
is continuing to be shipped off-site
for disposal. After the south track
excavation finishes and the track is
reconstructed, the excavation can
begin on the north track. Planning
is currently underway for the north
track excavation.

Soil samples taken on a farm

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THE WEEK AHEAD	

In the greater community:

EPA's Community Welcome Center remains open to
the public from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. EPA staff are
available to answer questions and address concerns.

Air monitoring will continue at 23 locations around
the community.

EPA's Trace Atmospheric Gas Analyzer (TAGA) mobile
laboratory will continue to monitor air.

Under the direction of EPA's unilateral order to Norfolk
Southern, additional soil sampling will take place
next week in Pennsylvania. This sampling will include
agricultural, residential, and state game areas.

COMMUNITY CORNER	

East Liverpool City Hospital, in collaboration with the Ohio Department of Health, is excited to announce the opening of
a permanent health clinic in East Palestine on Monday, April 10. The new clinic will provide traditional comprehensive
primary care with healthcare staff that will be able to evaluate and treat acute illnesses,
as well as focus on health maintenance and preventive care, write prescriptions, provide
lab testing, and schedule consultations with specialists where appropriate. Physicians,
registered nurses, and mental health specialists wiil be on hand to treat the community's
needs. Gretchen Nickel I, DO will serve as the medical director of the clinic. Dr. Nickell was
recently recognized by East Liverpool City Hospital as a community leaderwho "works and
leads others every day with dedication, kindness, and respect."

The East Palestine Clinic is located at 139 North Walnut. The clinic will operate
Monday-Friday 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. by appointment only. The clinic can be contacted by
calling 330-383-6020 or visiting the website at eastliverpoolcityhospital.org

Dr. Nickell

DID YOU KNOW?

Groundwater flows underground...
at different rates
The direction and speed that
groundwater moves is determined by
the surrounding geology of aquifers.
An aquifer is underground porous
rock that contains groundwater. If the
rock formation allows water to move
freely through it, then groundwater
can move quickly in a short period
of time. But, groundwater may
move slowly and sink deeper, taking
thousands of years to move back
into the environment.

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At the derailment site:

Continued heavy truck traffic along designated routes.

Taggart Street remainsclosed to the public.

Excavation work and backfilling on the south track will
near completion.

Excavated soil and collected wastewater will continue
to be shipped off-site.

Why is this important to know?
There has been a lot of interest in
the connection between surface
water, groundwater, and drinking
water afterthe train derailment. As
the arrows on the diagram show,
groundwatertypically flows towards
rivers. It is not as common for water
from rivers to flow into aquifers.
In East Palestine, existing
groundwater maps and onsite
monitoring wells will continue to be
used to confirm that drinking water
is notimpacted. If a drinking water
well is upgradient (or at a higher

elevation) from the work site, that
Well is less likely to be impacted. For
wells that are downgradient (or at a
lower elevation) from the derailment
site, that well is monitored and
tested.

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TOP 3

QUESTIONS OF THE WEEK

01

02

03

What are preliminary data and how are they different from
validated results?

Preliminary data are the initial results received from samples sentto the
laboratory. The general findings from this data may be used before validation
if there is an immediate health or environmental threat. Data validation is
the formal process by which experienced chemists assess the quality of the
preliminary data. Data validators check to see that the data report results have
been correctly identified and calculated. This is important in ensuring the data
is accurate.

How is wastewater being collected at the derailment site?

EPA is ensuring that water coming into contact with the derailment site does
not runoff into the surrounding area. Wastewater is generated after rain falls
on a contaminated area, and from cleaning and washing trucks before they
leave the derailment site. Wastewater is collected with pumps and pipes, and
temporarily stored in tanks before beingshipped off-site fordisposal. Much of
this collected water has little or no contamination, but because it comes from
the derailment site, it's treated as contaminated.

What is split sampling?

Splitsamplingis a technique where multiple samples are collected from the
same location at the same time and then sentto separate laboratories for
analysis. Checking to see if the labs get the same or similar results is a way
to determine the accuracy of the data. If there are differences, scientists then
know they need to investigate further. These additional steps help to make
sure thatthe bestdata is used to learn more about our environment.

BY THE
NUMBERS

As of April 7

18,917

TONS

EST. OF CONTAMINATED
SOIL SHIPPED

10,864,401

EST. GALLONS OF LIQUID
WASTEWATER SHIPPED

377

PRIVATE WELLS
SAMPLED

135

SOIL SAMPLES
TAKEN

THE WELCOME CENTER
HAS RECEIVED

504

VISITORS

SAFETY MINUTE

You may notice air sparging operations are wrapping up in some areas of
Leslie Run and Sulphur Run. Even with aeration completed, other cleanup
efforts continue. We still recommend staying out of these two streams until
cleanup is finished.

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ABOUT THIS PUBLICATION

KEY COMMUNITY
RESOURCES

Area resources available this week are as follows:

Pennsylvania Residents:

The Health Resource Center physically
located at the Darlington Township Building
is now closed

Call the Department of Health Hotline
(877-PA-HEALTH) to connect with a nurse to
find appropriate local health care services

Ohio Residents:

The East Palestine Clinic is located at 139
North Walnut, East Palestine, Ohio. The clinic
will operate:

Monday - Friday 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
by appointment only

The clinic can be contacted by calling
330-383-6020.

This weekly newsletter is being developed through a joint
effort of local, state, federal agencies, and community
organizations. If you would like more information
about topics discussed, please visit response.epa.gov/
EastPalestineTrainDerailmentorcall EPA's Information
Line at 866-361-0526

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