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Residents and borough staff press for clearer alerts after discharge into Goose Creek
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Summary
Residents described a milky-white discharge into Goose Creek that they say killed fish and urged immediate notification protocols; staff said investigations follow MS4 permit rules and encouraged residents to call 911 to trigger response routing.
Residents and environmental volunteers described a recent discharge into Goose Creek and urged the borough to improve rapid notification after the event.
At public comment, Carol, chair of Civic Action Southeast (CASE), said neighbors found a "milky white" substance in the creek and an American eel that died. She said she sent photos to borough staff and thanked Don Anderson and Sean Mitchell for responding. "This is not a small thing," she said, adding that pets and children should stay away from the water until samples are taken.
Courtney Finneran, a board member of the Goose Creek Alliance, echoed those concerns and thanked first responders. She said local watershed groups including the Chester Ridley Krum Watershed group are interested in a formal communication plan to notify residents adjacent to streams when pollution is suspected. Finneran also explained that the outfall that discharged the contaminant was a private outfall, not a borough-owned outfall, and urged West Goshen to conduct additional outfall inspections.
Metrick, a borough staff member, told residents that the fastest way to get a response for suspected discharges is to dial 911 so dispatch can route the call to the people who can respond. "That's the quickest way to get anything in the hands of the people that can do something about it when we have conditions like this," he said.
Kelly Goff, the project engineer reporting to the committee, described the borough's obligations under its MS4 stormwater permit: borough staff must inspect outfalls, collect samples after detecting a listed discharge, and report investigations and notices of violation to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP). Goff said staff would investigate the reported discharge, try to determine the source, and issue a notice of violation if appropriate; PADEP can be asked to escalate enforcement if the source won’t cooperate.
The committee did not make a formal enforcement decision at the meeting. Staff said they are beginning targeted outfall inspections and will coordinate sampling after suitable dry-weather conditions and permit-compliant wait times. The committee encouraged residents to submit photos and to use emergency reporting channels for suspected discharges.
