HALL COUNTY, Ga. — Norfolk Southern will pay Georgia $10,000 over a train derailment in Hall County last year that spilled soybeans into a local creek and killed fish.
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division announced the penalty on Monday, saying the rail company violated the state Water Quality Control Act "as a result of a railcar derailment allowing soybeans to be deposited into waters of the state."
The derailment happened last July. In August, the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper organization reported that decomposing soybeans were found along a one-and-a-half mile stretch of Flat Creek and dropping oxygen levels were diminished along a three-and-a-half mile stretch of the waterway.
The group said it resulted in the deaths of dozens of fish. In a September update, the group said the railroad company was "still working on clean up and we'll continue to track water quality, though it may be some time before conditions improve."
The state did not announce a cause of the derailment.
The penalty in Georgia comes amid scrutiny on Norfolk Southern following a derailment in Ohio that resulted in a major spill of hazardous chemicals.
The town of East Palestine was evacuated and authorities conducted a burn of the chemicals to "alleviate the risk of uncontrollable shrapnel from an explosion" according to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.
11Alive's sister station in Cleveland, WKYC, reported over the weekend that the federal Environmental Protection Agency has informed Norfolk Southern it may be held liable for damages and cleanup in the Ohio derailment. Residents there have also been warned of having "at risk" drinking water.
