ROCK SPRING, Ga. – As workers continue to clean up a potentially toxic oil spill, the Walker County Development Authority indefinitely postponed the sale of the Coats American plant in Rossville.
The authority began seeking offers for the site in January, but it voted Tuesday to revisit a sale once the Environmental Protection Agency lets people work there again. According to Rossville police, a man tipped over a transformer inside the abandoned plant on March 11, spilling oil into a storm drain. Investigators believe the man tried to strip the copper off the transformer.
The oil contained polychlorinated biphenyls, a chemical linked to cancer, reproductive issues among men and development issues among children. The oil ran from the storm drain to the Williams Street Tributary. The night of the spill, a man told police he saw an oily sheen in a drainage ditch across the street from the plant.
The authority planned to review proposals for the site at its March 13 meeting. But after the spill, Walker County Economic and Community Development Director Robert Wardlaw suggested the board postpone any action, as a team responded to the spill. The authority agreed.
Now, a month has passed and a team still needs to work through the spill. Commissioner Shannon Whitfield said the county contracted with Marion Environmental, whose workers are reviewing the site, located at 105 Maple St. in Rossville. The team is looking at how much PCB is in the area. The county will then submit a proposed cleanup plan to the EPA.