Monday, August 9, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 7 OIL SPILL From Page 1 stage when the spill occurred, oil likely deposited along the shoreline when waterlevels returned to normal, affect- ingwildlife in the area, Burton said. Though a large amount of oil leaked out of the pipeline, Burton said he does not think the leak will affect Lake Mich- igan, astheoilwilllikelybe deposited in smaller lakes first. Some of the oil will also be diluted as it goes downstream due to the warmer water temperatures. Burton added that he does not believe any of the fishing industries will see any long term effects, because there are other unaffected tributar- ies flowing into the Kalamazoo River. Monitoring the area, however, will still be necessary to determine the level of toxicity, he said. "I would like to think that in a peri- od of months, any direct toxicity that happened would be over with and we would have new organisms moving in that wouldn't be impacted," Bur- ton said. "But if it's settling into the sediments, that's goingto be where the concern is because organisms in the streams will continue to be exposed." Peter Adriaens, a University envi- ronmental engineering professor who has worked on the Exxon Valdez and Gulf War oil spills, said because the pipeline is around 30 years old, he believes the leak was due to corrosion of the steel. Adriaens said though there are sen- sors along the length of the pipe to measure changes in pressure, which would indicate a leak, temperature fluctuations and the differences in pressure that arise at pumpingstations routinely make it difficult for inspec- tors to identify a problem. Inspectors must also be able to hear a signal above the noise of the oil being pumped at the stations, Adriaens said. With the Kalamazoo River oil spill, Adriaens said inspectors probably did see a pressure drop butwere not able to immediately discern its cause. But because the spill occurred around a populated area, local resi- dents reported the smell of oil and officials were able to address the leak within three days of its occurrence, Adriaens said. Adriaens said after locating the site of the leak, officials tried to limit the extent of contamination by skimming oil off of the surface water and laying down booms - floating containment units used to enclose the oil. He added that the last step - determining how much oil is in the sediments - will take longer and could have a long-term effect on the region, proportional to the amount of residual oil. Though this oil spill is the worst in the history of the Midwest, Adriaens said monitoring has increased over the past decade, and the number ofleaks per 1,000 miles of pipeline has decreased by almost 60 percent with the amount of oil per leak also on the decline. As the lasting effects on area wild- life are examined, the people whose homes have been affected by the spill are also assessing their possible com- pensation. The affected area includes a mobile home park and 61 homes, which are in avoluntary evacuation zone, according to the Detroit Free Press. t w N PAUL SANCYA/AP A worker monitors water in Talmadge Creek near the Kalamazoo River. David Uhlmann, director of the Environmental Law and Policy Pro- gram at the Law School, said Enbridge Energy Partners will compensate homeowners for their losses, but there still may be the possibility of lawsuits if homeowners believe the damage is too great. Uhlmann also said he is concerned about the company's response to the spill, as there have been reports that Enbridge Energy Partners may have delayed providing notice to the appro- priate authorities, and it is unclear whether the response efforts were suf- ficient in limiting the magnitude of the leak. Both actions could result in at least civil penalties, if not civil prosecution, Uhlmann said. According to the Detroit Free Press, the U.S. House Committee on Trans- portation and infrastructure will hold a hearing on Sep. 15 in Washington D.C. to analyze the oil spill and the company's response. Snyder, Bernero win Mich. gubernatorial primary elections Party candidates look to replace outgoing Dem. Gov. Granholm By ESHWAR THIRUNAVUKKARASU ManagingNewsEditor Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Snyder and Democratic candidate Virgil Bernero won Tuesday's primary election and will look to succeed out- going Democratic Gov. Jennifer Gran- holm in the general election on Nov. 2. Seven men in total contested First seen on the election, consisting of five Republicans - Mike Bouchard, Mike Cox, Tom George, Pete Hoekstra and Snyder - and Democratic candidates Bernero and Andy Dillon. With votes counted from the 143 precincts of Washtenaw County, Snyder led the Republican field with 12,824 votes over nearest competitor Pete Hoekstra at 5,117 votes, according to the county clerk's office. Dillon, who conceded the race to Bernero, trailed with 9,249 votes to Bernero's 17,741 votes. "For people that believe our govern- ment works well and that the political system works well, they should vote for the other candidate," Snyder said before his supporters, according to the Associated Press. "For people who believe our government is broken, our political system is broken, it's time for catalysts. I want to represent you, someone from the real world." Bernero addressed his supporters at a Detroit hotel, saying "the Michigan we grew up in, the Michigan that was at the top, is the Michigan that we're ready to fight for today." D For the rest of this story, see R MichiganDaily.com/blogs For more information, please contact Stephanie Bowker or Julianna Crim at dailydisplay@gmail.com