Oil Spill Threatens Rouge River

On June 22, Northville resident and Friend Jeff Snyder  was alarmed to see a boom on the river downstream of the former Northville Downs property. The boom was placed to contain a spill of roughly 80 gallons of oil and kerosene that leaked into a storm drain after 12 steel drums were pierced during demolition of a building on June 21, 2024. This oil spill could affect as many as 30 miles of the river downstream of the site. 

Friends of the Rouge responded to the incident with a letter to local officials requesting an investigation and plan for preventing this from happening in the future.  The spill is being cleaned up and the state is conducting testing but a spill like this can have lasting effects on the aquatic life in the river and the quality of the environment. It is especially alarming in a river that is home to endangered sensitive fish like the redside dace.