Turtle hatchlings show Kalamazoo River is coming back from oil spill

The Kalamazoo River has a long way to go before it’s back to its pre-spill state, before the Enbridge Energy Partners LP oil spill. But the birth of baby turtles along the river marks an example of the resilience of the river’s wildlife, a metaphor for the rebirth of the waterway after one of the worst oil spills in Midwest history, reports the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Excerpt:

Turtles took the brunt of the environmental tragedy, with community members, wildlife officials and others collecting about 2,700 of them, by far the most of all the animals captured. Of that total, about 2,100 were released back into the wild last fall after they were cleaned with, of all things, mayonnaise, which breaks down petrochemicals.

Of the turtles captured, only 10 died.

Robert Doherty, a senior scientist and ecologist with Stantec Consulting, a multi-service engineering and environmental firm, said he believes it was the largest-ever freshwater turtle rescue operation.

For more on the how the turtles are being treated, please read the rest of the story.

Source: Kalamazoo Gazette