EPA Responds to Oil Spill into Lake Michigan from BP Refinery in Indiana

The (EPA) has issued a Notice of Federal Interest, which formally advises BP of the federal government’s involvement in the spill and directs the company to conduct a cleanup.

BP, under oversight from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has deployed more than 2,000 feet of boom to contain an oil spill at its Whiting, Ind. refinery. In addition, the company has used vacuum trucks to remove about 5,200 gallons of an oil/water mixture from the spill location.

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BP crews also are combing a nearby company-owned beach for oil globs and conducting air monitoring to ensure public safety. The U.S. Coast Guard has flown over the area and has not observed any visible sheen beyond the boomed area, according to the EPA

The EPA says it will continue to work with the U.S. Coast Guard, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, and BP to contain and clean up the spilled oil.