LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On a chilly Sunday afternoon, workers with PECCO Emergency Response work in Pond Creek in a blocked off portion of a public park off Lamborne Boulevard.

Andrew Crawford came to the area for a run, a community surrounded by homes.

“[I] noticed there’s a crew here working and wasn’t sure what that was about,” Crawford said.

A worker told WHAS11 they are a contracted group involved in the environmental cleanup efforts, after the UPS cargo plane crash on Tuesday.

The Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) warned people on Friday to avoid waterways like Northern Ditch and Southern Ditch that come directly from the crash site, along with Pond Creek. MSD said the water could be potentially contaminated with runoff from the crash.

One of the workers WHAS11 they’re taking a layer of petroleum off of the water of Pond Creek.

“[I was] a little surprised,” Crawford said. “I mean being a ways away from the airport, I didn’t think much about it in the waterways…[There’s] definitely a concern, a lot of environmental concerns. I’m glad that there’s crews out here taking care of it.” 

The Environmental Protection Agency has joined UPS in cleaning up oil from these waterways, which flow to the Salt and Ohio Rivers. 

When thinking of the toxins released from the UPS plane crash, Audrey Ernstberger, an attorney with the Kentucky Resources Council, worries about the air and water qualities from the crash itself and the remediation efforts by first responders, such as firefighting foams which she said could have been used to put out the fire.

“It’s certainly an amount that’s highly concerning,” Ernstberger said. “I think precaution and taking an abundance of precaution is the necessary step for people who live in the area, you know, avoiding contact with Northern and Southern ditches, especially in Pond Creek, and keeping pets away from that area is really important.”

Her concerns lie with the EPA on environmental and public health risks, pointing to affected birds, fish, and other wildlife, potentially harming people.

“What is the scope of contamination in terms of how far it has actually migrated?” Ernstberger wondered.

This is a question investigators are working to get the answer to.

Ernstberger remembers the lives lost and honors the brave work of first responders, while hoping the protection of lives in the crash’s aftermath is ensured. 

She also hope problem areas are communicated to the public and test results are accessible as part of the remediation efforts.

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