Ecology considers response to jet fuel dumping into Puget Sound
May 4th, 2009 by cdunaganI finally caught up with lingering questions revolving around health and environmental concerns about the dumping of jet fuel over Puget Sound.
A sheen of jet fuel Wednesday near
Blake Island
Photo courtesty of Washington Department of
Ecology
Everyone apparently agrees that the Asiana Airlines pilot of the Boeing 777 did the right thing.
But, as Curt Hart of the Department of Ecology told me, “When there are lives at stake, you do what you need to do, and we will sort things out later. That doesn’t mean these actions don’t come at a cost.”
See the story posted online today and scheduled for tomorrow’s Kitsap Sun.
Ecology officials say it is possible that the airline could be assessed costs for any or all of these issues, depending on circumstances:
- Penalties for wrongdoing, if the incident could have been avoided through proper engine maintenance, etc.
- An environment damage assessment for the effects of the fuel on the Puget Sound ecosystem,
- State costs for sending out investigators in a helicopter and land-based vehicles.
Ecology set up a Web page this morning about the agency’s involvement with the incident.
As for health effects, Scott Lindquist of the Kitsap County Health District told me that his staff saw no short-term breathing problems related to the incident, and chronic health effects are more related to long-term exposures.
KOMO News video shows plane dumping fuel and
landing:
Tags: Asiana Airlines, jet fuel
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