Sap or Oil Spill?

I recently noticed there is a large dark spot on the ground under one of my long leaf pines on the front acre.

My first thought was fuel/oil spill. It's right at the base of the pine tree. I went down there today with a rake and shovel to try to remove it. I started digging the contaminated soil away. At the outer edges I got to clear sand pretty quickly. But right in the middle I dug down a few inches, came to some roots and there was still more contamination. I have no idea how far down this goes.

Last October I had a guy come in to do some clearing of the small trees and shrubs so I could have a home put on the land. He used a combination mini bulldozer equiped with a chipper. The machine broke down after 7 hours of work and he left it sitting there through the rest of the weekend, then fixed it on Monday and worked for another hour.

Just to be sure I need to know if there is any way that a pine tree can throw off any substance that I might mistake as petroleum products. These trees do run sap pretty heavily. If this is a by product of the pines, then I won't worry about it.

If it is actually an oil spill from that dozer, how can I neutralize what I can't get to in the ground? I would appreciate any advice.

Thanks,
Molly

Okay, after closer observation, it is diesel fuel. So it's not just some idiot dumping his dirty auto oil in the woods. There is now no doubt it came from that bulldozer last fall. The guy also broke my neighbors fence and never bother to fix nor mention it.

Please anyone, how can I neutralize this stuff, before it leaches in and kills that 50 foot pine tree?

Molly

Molly,
I have never seen or heard of pine trees doing this.
Please contact your county Health Dept. & let them know.
They will help you. This sounds like,it would be something the county would check out to see what this is & then take steps to clean it up.
I hope you can get help on this right away.Please keep us up todate on this.
Colie

Colie,

I think we have pretty well figured it was a diesel fuel spill from that dozer that cleared my land last fall. They also broke the horse fence next door. I was thinking about contacting them first, before anyone else gets involved.

Going to the health department would have to be a last resort. Something like this would get the EPA involved, with fines, clean up costs and all that. Unless it becomes a real big problem, I don't believe I want all those people crawling all over my land.

Molly
:^)))

To the best of my knowledge, attempting to neutralize that spill by yourself would prove futile. Up my way, they have specially licensed contractors who deal with these issues. Best to remove the soil and replace it before it leaches. Diesel fuel is not the greatest thing for the environment.

Poor you. I am so sorry to hear about this.

If it were completely out in the open, perhaps it would burn up. ....but it's not.

Thank you all, yes a controlled burn would do the trick, but my treasured long leaf pines are all down on this end of my property. I don't want to endanger them.

If I were able to do that, (and have the nerve) it would have to be when this drought is over and rainy season is back.

Molly

Molly, if you slowly water the area where the spill is the diesel fuel will rise to the surface as it is lighter than water. then lay down some absorbent pads and they will pick up the fuel. Make a little dirt berm around the area so there is no runoff. If its diesel fuel or oil it will always rise to the surface of the water. You may have to do this several times. Also small spills are usually handled be your local fire dept. In most states EPA doesn't get involved unless the spill is over a set gallon amount or is a dangerous substance.

I hope this helps Charlie

Just a little more information: these absorbent pads are usually available at your local auto parts store. I have worked on heavy equipment most of my career and have been on jobs where spills have occurred. One site was an oil undercoating business that after 25 years was sold. The prospective buyer had the state EPA take soil samples and the contamination was only to the top 6 inches of soil even after 25 years. These fuel and oil spills always look worse than they actually are as the fuel or oil is at the surface. Removal of the top six inches of soil and then do the soaking with water and adsorbing pads should do the trick.

Charlie

Charlie,

Thanks for this very useful information. I know what sorb pads you mention. We've used them for absorbing back wash when fueling a boat.

Thanks, again.

Molly

Glad to help, also there is a product that contains bacteria that will digest any remaining oil. They metabolize oil just like a food to carbon dioxide and new cell material (more microorganisms), they are naturally present everywhere but some have been genetically modified by industry to be better at doing it, and they can do this because of the enzymes they produce. Again, if you check with your local fire dept. they may have some they could give you or would know where you could get some. Most fire departments now have extensive hazardous material training and are usually very helpful.

After you've done as much cleanup as you can I would mix this in the remaining soil and let it do it thing.

Good luck, Charlie

The process is called bioremediation. It may not be as simple as just introducing Pseudomonas to the area where the diesel fuel contaminated soil has been removed. I've never participated in this type of a clean up however I have heard mention of specialized surfactants being used in combination with the Pseudomonas to break surface tension. Great suggestion to check with a local fire department. In my area, the Pseudomonas can only be purchased by specially licensed contractors.