BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
Tesla employees have spilled an unidentified chemical into Palo Alto’s storm drains and Matadero Creek, according to a hazardous materials spill report by the California Office of Emergency Services.
The spill was reported on Thursday around 5 p.m., the report said.
A mixture of dye and a chemical used for the chiller system that cools Tesla’s AI supercomputer was released while Tesla employees were draining the system, the spill report said.
Palo Alto firefighters recovered around 550 gallons of the mixture from storm drains, the report said.
It’s unknown how much of the mixture was released and ended up in the creek, the report said.
The spill was caused by “human error” at Tesla’s research and development facility at 1501 Page Mill Road, the spill report said.
Tesla has contracted with Clean Harbors to clean-up the release. Crews were on-site today (Oct. 23) with a bulldozer, trucks, dumpsters filled with dirt, a hose hooked up to a fire hydrant and “DANGER” tape around the edge of the creek.
The clean-up is happening at 410 Fernando Ave., across the street from Boulware Park and about a mile away from the site of the spill.
Cari Templeton, a member of the Planning and Transportation Commission who is running for council, said she’s concerned about how little residents know. She learned about the spill last night when a concerned resident reached out.
Templeton said she reached out to Valley Water this morning and the agency didn’t know about the spill.
“We need better communication when environmental incidents occur, such as this one,” Templeton said in an email. “People shouldn’t have to dig this hard to find out when a chemical cleanup is happening next to their home and in their city, and how it will affect their families and children.”
Templeton said she has a lot of questions: “Why didn’t the Palo Alto Fire Department report this incident to Valley Water directly? Exactly what chemicals were spilled? Are these chemicals dangerous? Was this spill reported when the incident occurred, or was there a delay between when it occurred and when it was reported? How did it get into the creek — was it dumped? And who is the clean-up crew accountable to — the government or Tesla?”
Tesla representatives and Fire Marshall Tamara Jasso couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
Be the first to comment