An unknown amount of fuel oil spilled into the Muddy River last Sunday, prompting an emergency response from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) and local conservation groups.
The oil was concentrated in Leverett Pond in Olmstead Park, near the Longwood MBTA station, but had also flowed downstream into the river. MassDEP set up a boom and sorbent system to contain and absorb residual oil, and have continued clean-up efforts, according to a spokesperson.
Veterinary teams in full hazmat gear from the New England Wildlife Conservancy have also been searching for animals affected by the spill and have so far begun treating 43 birds.
“It's been all hands-on deck here,” the conservancy wrote in a social media post last Monday. “Right now it is not safe for folks who are not hazmat trained and trained in oil spill response to come to try to rescue. It is believed this is a heating oil spill, but we do not know for sure. The goal is to rescue, triage, stabilize and treat.”
The Associated Press reported last week that the oil appeared to have originated from a storm drain under a nearby condominium complex.
After significant rain on Wednesday, a MassDEP spokesperson said, a small amount of additional fuel oil had collected in the pond, which had also likely come from the storm drain. The spokesperson said that oil containment in this area is challenging during heavy rainfall, due to high runoff volumes.
The Muddy River has exceedingly poor water quality when compared to the rest of the Charles River. This is in part because it is largely fed by storm drains.
The Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA), which releases an annual water quality report of different areas in the river system, has consistently found the Muddy River to be the most polluted section of the Charles.
“A longtime effort of the Charles River Watershed Association has been restoring the Muddy River, which requires addressing the root challenges of urban drainage, including wet weather pollution due to stormwater runoff, and dry weather pollution, including illicit discharges such as this oil spill,” the association said in a statement.
“The spill is still being investigated by MassDEP, and we are eager to see appropriate corrective action taken to prevent anything like this from happening again.”
According to the association, the last oil spill in the Muddy River was in 2022.
A MassDEP spokesperson said that conditions in the river had significantly improved before last Wednesday’s rainstorm, and that only a light to moderate oil sheen was seen in downstream areas later that week.
“This oil spill will continue to have numerous negative effects on the Muddy River, as oil contains toxic chemicals that can last in the environment for decades, adhering to the soil,” the CRWA said in its statement.
