Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Environment Airport topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Tullahoma officials report jet‑fuel leak contained; cleanup ongoing, funding options explored
Summary
City leaders said a late‑October release of jet‑A fuel at Tullahoma Airport (about 895 gallons) was contained to a detention pond, that cleanup crews removed roughly 16,000 gallons of contaminated water and 300 tons of soil, and that staff are pursuing EPA grants, insurance coverage and other funding to avoid using UDAG reserve funds.
TULLAHOMA, Tenn. — City officials told the Board of Mayor and Aldermen on Dec. 8 that a late‑October release of jet‑A fuel at Tullahoma Airport was contained and is in an active cleanup phase, but that funding and insurance coverage remain uncertain.
Alderman Bird summarized an incident first reported Oct. 29 by a Vanderbilt Life Flight crew. “The jet‑A fuel release was caused by a bucket that was hanging off of the sump valve handle, resulting in the valve being roughly three quarters of the way open,” Bird said. Emergency responders and an environmental contractor arrived quickly; the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) and contractors confirmed the fuel did not reach Rock Creek.
Bird said cleanup crews have removed about 16,000 gallons of contaminated water and roughly 300 tons of contaminated soil so far, and that the initial estimate of released fuel was about 895 gallons. “After several days of continued cleanup and removal of the contaminated soil, it was determined that roughly 100 gallons of fuel was unaccounted for,” he said.
City staff later confirmed that the missing volume was trapped in an aging stormwater pipe on city property. Workers excavated and replaced a fractured section of the pipe, corrected an elevation issue and installed a manually operated gate valve and a locking sump valve to reduce the chance of future releases.
City Administrator (unnamed) said the pipe dated to the 1950s and lacked modern gravel underlayment, which helped limit lateral spread: “If it had been gravel, it probably would have been much worse,” he said.
Officials are pursuing multiple funding avenues to cover cleanup costs. Economic development director Kelly North told the board the EPA recently announced a cleanup grant program with a funding ceiling of $500,000 and that staff are also coordinating with the South Central Tennessee Development District and Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development on brownfield and other grant options. The administrator said the city has filed a property‑damage claim under an existing policy for up to $100,000 while staff continue to assess whether the insurer will cover this type of release.
Bird said the city is treating UDAG loan funds as an emergency backup only and is actively seeking grants and other help to avoid drawing on that pool.
The board heard a list of proposed preventive steps: a formal spill prevention, control and countermeasure plan; installation of automated flow gates at stormwater outlets serving the airport; purchase and placement of spill kits at fuel farms and on tanker trucks; creation of standard sump procedures; additional employee training; and locking valves on sumps. Staff said these upgrades will be paid for by airport budget lines or grants when possible.
TDEC and the contracted cleanup firm, OES, will continue sampling soils and water for about four to six weeks before issuing any “no further action” determination, officials said. The airport interim manager and economic development staff will report back on grant applications and insurance developments.
What’s next: staff will continue monitoring, pursue EPA and brownfield grants, and evaluate insurance coverage and potential riders to extend airport fuel‑release coverage.
