Mich. Gas Leak Larger Than Previously Reported
WHITE OAK TOWNSHIP (WWJ/AP) - Marathon Pipe Line LLC now says as much as 462,000 gallons of gasoline might have leaked from a faulty pipeline in mid-Michigan.
The updated figures mean the leak is anywhere from two to four times larger than previously reported.
Marathon originally estimated that 126,000 gallons had leaked into the soil before it was detected April 13 by a farmer in Ingham County's White Oak Township whose 16-acre farm backs up to four fuel storage tanks.
After the farmer noticed gasoline trickling into a drainage ditch near the edge of his property, investigators traced the leak's source to a faulty gasket on the pipe.
Officials confirmed the larger leak after a memo explaining it to county officials was obtained by the Lansing State Journal on Thursday.
Marathon Pipe Line spokesman Robert Calmus says the company's "number one concern is doing what's right."
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
