DEP Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

State Approves Air Quality Permit For Factory Where Explosion Killed 1

The Division of Air Quality approved the permit for Optima Belle to replace the equipment damaged in the explosion and return to normal operations.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) has approved an air quality permit for a Kanawha County facility where a fatal explosion occurred in 2020.

The Division of Air Quality approved the permit for Optima Belle to replace the equipment damaged in the explosion and return to normal operations.

The WVDEP held a public meeting on Optima Belle’s permit application earlier this month.

Last month, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board issued a report on the December 2020 explosion, which killed one worker, John Gillenwater of Putnam County.

It found that the company used an incorrect process for drying a chemical compound that when overheated, could cause a reaction that exceeded the design pressure of the dryer unit.

Three others were injured in the blast, including two workers and the driver of a car that was struck by debris. A shelter-in-place order was issued within a two-mile radius of the plant.

Messer Agrees To Pay EPA $1.9 Million Over Water Pollution Violations

The EPA and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection found that the company exceeded its discharge permits for copper, aluminum, iron and residual chlorine at its facility in New Cumberland.

A Northern Panhandle industrial and medical gas manufacturer has agreed to pay a civil penalty for water pollution violations.

Under a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Messer LLC has agreed to pay a $1.9 million penalty for violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

Messer is required to construct a new water treatment system to eliminate those violations and monitor stormwater to ensure future compliance.

The public has 30 days to comment on the consent decree prior to approval from the federal district court for the Northern District of West Virginia.

The EPA and the state DEP, as co-plaintiffs in the consent decree, will split the penalty.

Thousands Of Gallons Of Oil Spill From Storage Tank In Kanawha County

An open valve on a storage tank spilled potentially several thousand gallons of crude oil, the Kanawha County Commission said Monday.

An oil spill Sunday in Kanawha County does not appear to pose any threat to waterways or wildlife, but officials continue to monitor the situation.

An open valve on a storage tank spilled potentially several thousand gallons of crude oil, the Kanawha County Commission said Monday.

After an odor was reported in the upper Blue Creek area, officials from Kanawha County Emergency Management, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection and the Cedar Grove Volunteer Fire Department were able to close the valve.

Booms and heavy machinery have been moved in to clean up the spill. Officials have been checking Blue Creek down to the point where it meets the Elk River.

They report no evidence of a sheen or any harm to aquatic life.

The county’s spring trout release was supposed to take place at Clendenin and Blue Creek on Monday, but will now take place on Tuesday as a result of the spill.

Drinking Water Safe In Spite Of PFAS Tests, State Health Chief Says

State health office Mathew Christiansen noted that the data are preliminary and that the state is ahead of the curve on testing.

After testing showed “forever chemicals” in treated water in more than two dozen water systems, state officials sought to reassure the public.

Matthew Christiansen, the chief health officer, said Wednesday that the state Bureau of Public Health had not issued any advisories related to the PFAS detected in water systems.

“The water you get from your faucet has been and remains one of the safest water sources out there,” he said.

Testing found PFAS in 27 water systems. Of those, 19 had levels above proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency limits for PFAS in drinking water.

The Department of Health and Human Resources and the Department of Environmental protection released the data last week.

Christiansen noted that the data are preliminary and that the state is ahead of the curve on testing.

Exposure to PFAS for prolonged periods may have adverse health effects, the EPA has determined.

Annual Adopt-A Highway Spring Cleanup Aims To Beat Last Year’s Numbers

Nearly 300 groups, with more than 2,600 participants, are registered to comb Mountain State main and back roads, picking up tons of trash.

Saturday’s statewide Adopt-A Highway spring cleaning should make our country roads much less cluttered. Nearly 300 groups, with more than 2,600 participants, are registered to comb Mountain State main and back roads, picking up tons of trash.

The annual spring cleanup is hosted by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Division of Highways.

Terry Fletcher, the chief communications officer for the DEP, said volunteers will be provided with all necessary protective gear and pick up materials.

Fletcher said DEP is hoping to recruit more Adopt-A-Highway groups and members with the statewide event.

“We have a Youth Environmental Program that does a really great job with helping to promote this as well,” Fletcher said. “They’re talking to school groups and students across the state about ways they can join in and pitch in to help clean up their communities.”

Fletcher said tossed out trash is not just an eyesore – it’s an environmental hazard and a physical danger.

”This stuff that you throw out of your car, it’s gonna find its way into a stream,” he said. “It’s gonna find its way into people’s yards and into our forests, stuff that can cause all kinds of environmental issues and problems.”

Fletcher said a spring cleanup goal is to surpass the 68,000 pounds of trash removed from more than 800 miles of roadway last year.

Click here for information on how to get involved.

Honeywell, Olin To Pay To Clean Up Superfund Site Near Moundsville

The EPA and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection reached a settlement with the two companies.

Two chemical companies will pay for the cleanup of a Superfund site along the Ohio River.

Honeywell and Olin will pay at least $8 million to clean up a contaminated site south of Moundsville, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Tuesday.

The EPA and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection reached a settlement with the two companies. The actual cleanup cost could be more, the EPA said.

Mercury and chloromethane are the primary contaminants in the soil and groundwater at the site, and the cleanup will contain and remove it.

The Hanlin-Allied-Olin Superfund site is named for the various companies that operated there for the past 70 years. Allied is now part of Honeywell.

The site was added to the Superfund program’s National Priorities list in July 1999. Superfund sites are federally designated abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.