West Virginia DEP Issues Order to Dunkard Creek Mining Facility
WV-DEP News Release
21 December 2009
For Immediate Release
Contact Kathy Cosco
304-926-0499, Ext. 1331
[Click
here for a 94K .PDF copy of the news release. You can click
here for a 1.6 Meg .PDF copy of the actual order.]
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has issued an
order to Consolidation Coal Company (Consol) that establishes
guidelines for the company to resume pumping water from its underground
mining operations that straddle the border between West Virginia and
Pennsylvania.
The order is a short-term order that would allow pumping under
controlled conditions from the effective date of the order until it
expires on April 30, 2010. It allows Consol to resume pumping to bring
the mine pool to a level that creates possible storage capacity that
can be used as a water management tool during low flow, high
temperature months and ensure the safety of the approximately 400
miners working underground at its Blacksville No. 2 mine.
Consol voluntarily ceased pumping water from the mine works into
Dunkard Creek in cooperation with the multi-state investigation of the
cause of a major fish kill that spanned more than 40 miles of the
stream.
Based on information concerning the conditions favorable to the growth
of golden algae, the probability for an algae bloom increases when the
water temperature rises above 50 degrees. Therefore, when the water
temperature is 50 degrees or higher, the in-stream limit that must be
met by Consol is 860 milligrams per liter, which is the acute water
quality standard for chloride in West Virginia.
For temperatures between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit the limits would
decrease as the temperature increases. In the meantime, when the
water temperature is below 40 degrees Fahrenheit, and the probability
for an algae bloom is low, the company must meet an in-stream limit of
1,400 mg/l.
“What we have learned from golden algae experts from around the country
is that this alga is less likely to bloom, and produce toxins in cooler
water temperatures,” said Scott Mandirola, assistant director of the
Division of Water and Waste Management. “So while the risk is low
during the cold and wet season, we believe it is safe for the company
to pump down the mine pool as much as possible. Once the
temperatures begin to rise, more stringent limits will go into effect.”
The order calls for chloride and conductivity monitoring to be
conducted at Blacksville No. 2’s discharge point and downstream in West
Virginia Fork of Dunkard Creek. The company will also conduct
monitoring for additional parameters of concern identified during the
fish kill investigation, including algae and selenium.
Although the order is considered a short-term one, it also addresses
long-term issues. Under the order, Consol must complete and submit a
proposal for the construction of treatment plants for its operations in
northern and north-western West Virginia. The draft proposal is due to
the WVDEP by April 15, 2010, and the project must be completed by May
31, 2013. The first treatment plant to be completed would remove
problematic discharges from Dunkard Creek.
Additionally, all other outlets that are the subject of WVDEP Order
133C would be addressed in the proposal.
The WVDEP sought input and concurrence from the Environmental
Protection Agency and the Pennsylvania DEP prior to issuing the order
to Consol.
“This order is a unilateral order by the state of West Virginia, which
does not require approval by the Environmental Protection Agency,” said
Cabinet SecretaryRandy Huffman. “However, we have been working very
closely with EPA and the Pennsylvania DEP from the beginning of this
event, and it is critical that they have had a seat at the table. This
is an important interstate issue.”
“While it is clear that total dissolved solids are a major factor in
the puzzle, it’s not the only factor,” Mandirola said.
The agency’s biologists and engineers have learned a great deal about
the algae, yet there is still more that is unclear including what
combination of factors has to be in place for the algae to bloom, and
what triggers the algae to produce the toxins that actually killed the
fish.
“We, like everyone else familiar with this event, don’t want this to
happen again and with the input of our counterparts in Pennsylvania and
at the EPA, and have put
together a workable plan that is intended to prevent another toxic
algae bloom,” Mandirola said.