SCURRY, Texas — Officials say a previously unknown black substance in a Scurry-area creek has been identified as non-toxic soybean ink and cleanup efforts are underway for an approximate 1.5-mile span of contamination.
On Wednesday, December 18, 2018, the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office was notified of a possible water contamination in the creek located in the 14000 block of County Road 4060 near Scurry, Texas, according to Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Jolie Stewart.
Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who are assigned to the Environmental Enforcement Division, water in the creek was black and unnatural and traced the source to property upstream where 19 300-gallon containers of black liquid were discovered.
Deputies noted during the initial investigation that the ground appeared to be saturated with the black liquid and was contaminating the water in the nearby creek.
The investigation prompted officials from the Kaufman County Office of Emergency Management, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to respond to the scene.
"The contamination was contained and testing of the black liquid was completed by TCEQ," stated Stewart.
"The tests revealed the liquid to be a non-toxic soybean ink that is used in several areas of manufacturing."
Stewart says the property owner has been cooperative during the investigation and will be responsible for the paying the environmental clean-up company which will use booms placed in the water for filtration and the removal of the saturated soil.
“After testing conducted by the TCEQ and Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife, I feel confident there is no danger to the public or the environment," stated Kaufman County Sheriff Bryan Beavers.
"We are glad citizens reached out to us and encourage anyone with concerns to notify us.” No criminal charges will be filed, according to Stewart.