They are still saying that it is unsafe to test the mud, no way to get a sample. These people are REALLY stupid or hoping for a big rain storm to wash the creek bare. A five gallon bucket under a helicopter on a long line seems like it would work for me. After all that creek is a 150 metres wide now. I have been landed in helicopters in a hell of a lot smaller area.
You can't sample soil or sediment like that; it wouldn't be representative. The material would segregate as it was washed out of the pond. Typical sampling practice from a stock pile is you collect sample from three points: bottom, middle and top as you rotate around the pile. We were fortunate that no one was killed in this accident, and there is no need to send someone into an unstable area, risking their life to collect a sediment sample.
--As you indicated... IF they wanted a sample... they could get one... I don't see why they would need a sample... obviously the stuff was so toxic that it had to be contained in ponds... if it was safe why not just drain it direct in the first place.. this is a no brainer.
--As to MOE spokes person almost in tears... it takes days to get sample results... BS... this is a priority use Christy's jet to transport the samples to multiple labs and get it done. What takes days is deciding how to spin doctor the results.
Ever heard of people dying from too much water? Just because it was contained doesn’t mean it was lethal. It’s the concentration that is important, and you do need to sample to know
what you're dealing with.
You have absolutely no idea how to do the lab testing required so how would you know how long it would take to get the results?! Stop spouting BS when you have no clue what you are talking about.
--Maybe some registered experts need to go back to school for a refresher course.
Maybe you should do some background research before you start telling people who make decisions based on fact to “go back to school”.
Utter codswallop. Darn near every company has on call staff for emergent purposes and more that can be called in. Or wasn't this case emergent enough for you? Did I mention codswallop?What parallel world do you inhabit?
Again, it doesn’t matter how many people you throw at the problem, if the Standard Test method says the sample must be treated in some process for 24 hours then it must be treated for 24 hours. Otherwise, you’re jeopardizing accuracy for urgency and in my opinion bad data is useless data no matter how quick you get it.