LAKE PEIGNEUR - A mysterious bubbling and foaming occurred again Thursday at Lake Peigneur, and state officials now are looking into what may be causing the activity.Thursday's activity was spotted around 7 a.m., when Richard Suire, who lives along the lake, said he saw bubbles shooting one to two feet into the air. The activity occurred in an area about 10 feet to 15 feet across and about three feet wide, Suire said.
Although the bubbling soon dissipated, a larger area of foam could be seen in the same spot until around noon. Michael Richard Sr., owner of the nearby tourist attraction Rip Van Winkle Gardens, said the foam extended in a line several hundred feet long. Richard said he also noticed an unusual odor near the foam.
"There was a distinct petroleum odor," Richard said. "I could smell it when I was downwind from it. It was a strong petroleum smell, like crude."
This is the third time within the past few months residents have seen such activity. But until Thursday, representatives from AGL Resources Inc., the company that operates two natural gas storage caverns beneath the lake, had not seen the activity.
Keith Poston, AGL's managing director of corporate communications, said residents notified the company about the activity this morning, and AGL officials were able to photograph and see the activity.
"We really don't have any theories about what it could be at this point," Poston said. "We still don't believe it's coming from the caverns or our operations. The area where the bubbling occurred today is about a half-mile away from our caverns. It doesn't seem likely that the bubbling is associated with them, but we really don't know."
Poston said that although AGL found no problems when it checked its equipment several weeks ago, the company will continue to investigate the situation and may send divers to further check its underwater operations.
In addition, two representatives from the state Department of Natural Resources traveled to the lake on Thursday and met with Richard to try to get a better understanding of the situation. The state Department of Environmental Quality also is expected to investigate.
Nara Crowley, who also lives near the lake, said residents collected water samples Thursday morning and sent them to an area lab for testing. Crowley said she was unsure how long the tests may take.
In the meantime, Poston said AGL has no plans to stop its Lake Peigneur operations while the activity is investigated.
"We have no reason to believe that our operations are causing this, nor do we have any reason to believe that the bubbling could result in any kind of risk to our facilities," Poston said. "I'm sure the state will want to examine it further, especially now that we've pinpointed the location. But we have no plans to cease our operations based on what we've seen."
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