COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — A specialized contractor is being sought to stop oil leaking from sunken construction equipment at Higgens Point, as reported by our news partners, the Coeur d'Alene Press.
The Idaho Transportation Department is working with the Department of Environmental Quality "to implement a quick and minimally invasive solution to capture and contain the leak," wrote Megan Jahns, ITD spokeswoman in Coeur d'Alene.
She said they expect to have proposals to review in about two weeks.
ITD said it was notified of product coming to the surface in the general vicinity of the relic equipment Dec. 7.
The agency placed floating booms to both contain the suspected diesel leak from the dozer and protect the shoreline, according to ITD.
"Dives determined that the equipment was still buried, but that the older, first protective membrane had been disturbed, likely after being caught by a boat anchor," according to ITD. "The other membrane looked to be intact."
The source of the oil was identified as a D9 dozer that fell in the lake during Interstate 90 construction in 1990. A Caterpillar 631 scraper also went in.
"The tank of the scraper was able to be drained due to how it landed, but the dozer was inaccessible," according to ITD. "State and federal agencies agreed that retrieval methods were too risky — both in terms of risk to personnel and to the stability of the slope underwater — and decided to abandon the equipment."
Oil leaks were also reported in 2000 and 2010, and both were repaired. No leaks had been reported until this most recent incident.
Wildlife officials said the situation was a minimal threat to migrating bald eagles feeding on the spawning kokanee at Higgens Point.
Once contained, for the future, more permanent projects may be considered and developed, ITD said.
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