Fuel-Spill Concerns Cause DEP to Cancel Grenloch Lake Trout Season

South Jersey fishermen who typically find trout at Grenloch Lake will have to look elsewhere during the upcoming spring season.

The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced Friday that "out of abundance of caution" it has opted to cancel the upcoming trout season and suspend indefinitely all water-related activities on the lake, which was fouled by a Jan. 12 diesel-fuel spill at the New Jersey Transit bus garage in neighboring Washington Township.

Grenloch Lake Park will remain open for all other activities.

DEP also announced Friday that it is investigating the cause of death of "a number of dead turtles" found in and near the lake.

Officials estimate 26,000 gallons of fuel emptied from two underground storage tanks at NJ Transit's Route 42 facility Jan. 11-12.

“While there has been significant progress in the cleanup of Grenloch Lake, out of an abundance of caution the DEP will not stock the lake with trout for the upcoming trout season and has closed the lake to all fishing,” DEP Commissioner Bob Martin said in a joint press release issued by DEP and NJ Transit. “In addition, (Washington Township), DEP, NJ Transit and the Gloucester County Health Department are advising the public that the lake not be used for swimming, wading or boating. We are also jointly advising the public to avoid allowing pets to enter the water while these activities continue.”

As of Friday, NJ Transit, with the help of environmental clean-up contractor Clean Venture Inc., of Elizabeth and Clayton, and under the guidance of DEP, has collected a total of 9,200 gallons of diesel fuel, 650-plus tons of contaminated soil, and more than 110 tons of fuel-soaked absorbent materials and debris.

The spring trout season begins April 7.

Grenloch Lake, which is bordered to the west by Washington Township and to the east by Gloucester Township, is a popular destination for area fishermen. DEP advises trout fishermen who normally fish at Grenloch Lake to try other nearby DEP-stocked waterways: Greenwich Lake in Greenwich, Iona Lake in Franklin Township, Swedesboro Lake in Swedesboro, Westville Lake in Westville, Oak Pond in Winslow Township, Gloucester City Pond in Gloucester City, Haddon Lake in Haddon Township and Rowands Pond in Clementon.

Under DEP guidance, NJ Transit continues to conduct periodic water and sediment sampling along all local water bodies impacted by the spill. Monitoring of air and drinking water is also ongoing, with no impacts or health concerns reported to date.

Tissue samples have been taken from fish from impacted water bodies, although there have not been any significant fish kills associated with the spill, the DEP said. Results of these test samples are pending.

Over the past two weeks, the DEP has observed dead turtles in and around the lake. The cause of these deaths remains under investigation, with tissue samples being analyzed in a laboratory.

A supervisor at NJ Transit's Washington Township bus garage discovered the source of the fuel spill sometime around 9 a.m. Jan. 12., as local firefighters searching the area for the source of a widely reported unusual odor descended on the transit system's Route 42 property.

By then, officials estimate roughly 26,000 gallons of diesel fuel—roughly the equivalent of what would be needed to fill 1 1/2 average-sized backyard swimming pools—had leaked from a damaged gasket located on a pipe between two 20,000-gallon underground storage tanks.

NJ Transit officials have said investigation revealed the on-site leak-detection system's alarm was triggered at 8:32 p.m. Jan. 11, but it was not recognized by anyone working at the garage that night before it automatically shut down.

The leak-detection system's functionality has since been addressed, most significantly by relocating the alarm to an area in the garage where it is more likely to be noticed by workers, according to NJ Transit.

NJ Transit has also installed liquid sensors in each valve pit to help detect leaks, modified its bus-fueling protocol, and modified the fluid-management system to automatically shut off the fuel pumps after each fueling is completed, providing a backup to ensure pumps are shut off.

"I have said this before and I will say this again. Our neighbors in Gloucester and Camden counties can be assured that NJ Transit is committed to being a continued and consistent presence within the community as we continue our work to alleviate the impact of the spill,” NJ Transit Executive Director James Weinstein said in the statement.

The NJ Transit hotline number remains in effect, with residents encouraged to call 800-626-7433 with any questions or concerns.

Read Gloucester Township Patch's full coverage of the diesel fuel spill:

• Fuel Spill Contained; Several Animals Found Dead
• NJ Transit Boss on Fuel Spill: 'Our Work Has Only Begun'
• NJ Transit Officials in Town to Talk About Fuel Spill
• Legislators Await Fuel Spill Probe Results