EAST PALESTINE — When former regional Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Debra Shore made her final speech in East Palestine just days before her time at the helm of the Region 5 office came to end, she called the clean-up of the Feb. 3, 2023 Norfolk Southern derailment “the most consequential environmental response in U.S. history.”

Two years after an overheated wheel bearing failed and sent 38 rail cars — 11 containing hazardous material — careening into a fiery heap and as the response nears its end, the full magnitude of the remediation efforts is told in gargantuan numbers. As of the end of January, 220,017 tons of soil contaminated by chemicals — both spilled in the initial derailment and intentionally released during a vent-and-burn days later — have been dug up and removed from the village. Over 74 million gallons of water have also been captured at the derailment site and disposed of off site. In addition, tens of thousands of samples have been taken and over 100 million data points collected by the EPA.

With the major remediation mostly complete and restoration now underway, the response footprint is shrinking. Infrastructure erected in the village to speed up clean-up efforts has been decommissioned and dismantled, and the Village of East Palestine is beginning to look like its old self again.