Clarkston resident Chet Pardee called on City Council for an update on pollution at M-15 and Clarkston Road.
Michigan Department of Transportation recently installed four markers around the intersection, each saying “Restricted Excavation Area, MDOT, #63071-51847-18.”
According to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, 148 N. Main at the northeast corner of the intersection has been an automotive related business since around 1920. In 1991, MDEQ found the property contained four underground tanks leaking gasoline, contaminating soil and water with petroleum-based chemicals.
Of the four tanks, two were installed in 1951, and the other two were installed in 1972. The tanks were removed from the property in 1992.
During a permit-request process for 148 N. Main Street in 2015, when it was considered for use as a coffee shop, the DEQ found a “plume” of pollution stretching in all directions from the property.
“I am concerned because of proximity, soil conditions and the pond adjacent to where we live,” Pardee said at the Aug. 13 City Council meeting.
Property owners are still under order to conduct an investigation and properly address it under Part 213 of Act 451, said Terri Golla, DEQ senior geologist.
The case is still open. A Revised Closure Report has been submitted but has not yet been reviewed, Golla said.
Thirteen of 18 records at issue in Susan Bisio’s Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the City of the Village of Clarkston are in regards to the 148 N. Main Street contamination plume, storm water system review, detention system options, and a hold harmless agreement. The other five documents regard property at M-15 and Waldon Road.
– Phil Custodio