Snow way!
Brown-tinted snow coated a small Maine town on Tuesday, sending residents into a fury after local officials warned the discolored flakes could cause skin irritation.
Rumford town officials urged locals to avoid touching the polluted snow after ND Paper Rumford Division, a local paper mill, malfunctioned and expelled black liquor – a byproduct of the paper production process – into the air, turning the falling snow a peculiar shade of tan.
“It’s everywhere,” business owner Bonnie Datchell told News Center Maine.
“Very dirty snow! Looks like the snow does in the springtime, though actually, it’s kind of like a reddish-brownish color,” she added.
The chemical emitted from the century-old mill has since been ruled non-toxic but physical contact with the discolored flakes can lead to skin and eye irritation due to the substance’s pH level of 10, the town posted on social media.
Local schools were advised to keep students from playing in the brown snow and residents were also warned to keep their pets inside.
“Although it is non-toxic it should not be touched or otherwise put in contact with skin,” the town posted.
“We are hopeful the rain tomorrow will wash most of the substance away and flush it off the ground and people’s homes or property.”
The state’s Department of Environmental Protection was on the scene Tuesday afternoon conducting tests on the tainted snow, which revealed the pH level had fallen just below 8, according to the town.
The paper mill, which has since fixed its faulty system and notified regulators of the issue, agreed to pay for third-party testing of the bronzed snow to alleviate public outcry. The results are expected in a week.
“Our understanding based on DEP’s testing, there’s no immediate threat to the public at this time,” Rumford Town Manager George O’Keefe told the local outlet.
“We just obviously ask people not to touch the snow or ingest it or put in their eyes or anything like that.”
