Cleanup Starts At Empty Creosote Plant In Bossier

BENTON, La. (AP) — State and federal environmental agencies say they are starting to clean up an abandoned creosote plant in north Bossier Parish.

In April, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed about 80,000 pounds of creosote sludge from storage tanks at Benton Creosote Works. Nancy Fagan, an environmental engineer with the EPA, told The Times of Shreveport that the agency plans to remove the remaining materials as money becomes available.

Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality documents show that the plant opened in 1948. It used creosote, an oily liquid, in preserved wood products such as pilings, telephone poles and railroad ties through 2008.

Fagan said the plant contains 10 to 15 tanks with creosote sludge and wastewater. Fagan said the sludge does not pose a danger to nearby residents.