Officials Urging Humans, Pets To Avoid Mill Creek Stream After Concrete Spill
Jul 30, 2021, 12:43 PM | Updated: 11:53 pm
MILLCREEK, Utah — Officials with the Utah Department of Environmental Quality are advising Utahns and their pets to avoid Mill Creek Stream due to a concrete spill, which has created hazardous water conditions.
The spill happened west of an Interstate 215 construction project near 3500 South on Thursday.
“It is imperative that humans and pets stay out of the water and away from Mill Creek Stream,” DEQ officials said, adding the spill increased the stream’s PH levels, which can cause skin irritations.
Crews are still working to figure out how much of the stream has been impacted, but they said elevated PH levels have been detected as far down as 500 East.
Teams from the DEQ, Utah Department of Transportation and Salt Lake County Health Department are on scene working to address the situation.
UDOT spokesperson John Gleason said crews anticipate it will take a week or so to cleanup the spill.
“This is initial information and that information could change as we learn more,” he said.
Ashley Sumner with DEQ said they are working to understand the environmental impacts, adding that they’re working with the Division of Wildfire Resources to understand and investigate the fish kill that occurred as a result of the spill.
Attention, anglers: Some concrete was spilled into Mill Creek near 3800 South & Upland Drive yesterday during an I-215 reconstruction project. Our biologists have confirmed that the increased PH levels in the water from the spill have caused a pretty significant fish kill pic.twitter.com/oNrGGamUX9
— UtahDWR (@UtahDWR) July 30, 2021
“We’re gonna continue to monitor this situation throughout the weekend and the life of the cleanup to make sure that the cleanup is effective and protective of human health and the environment,” said Sumner.
Officials with the Division of Water Quality said there is no impact on drinking or storm water because those systems are completely separate.
Gleason added that they are still trying to determine how much material made it into the water and what it consisted of.
“Our top priority right now is the health and well-being of the people that live in this area, the people that come out here and recreate,” he said. “We want to make sure that all people and animals are safe, and so that’s why we felt it was very important to put out the word right away to stay away from Mill Creek Stream, until the cleanup effort is complete.”
A hotline has been set up for anyone with questions or concerns about the spill at 844-909-3278.
