Company plans cleanup of former Johns Manville plant

State environmental regulators have accepted an application from Structures Resources, Inc. to clean up the former Johns Manville Property, located along 2905 3rd Ave., Vienna, Wood County.

The applicant has negotiated a voluntary agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection’s Office of Environmental Remediation to clean up any contaminants found at the site. The agreement, known as a voluntary remediation agreement, assesses potential human health and ecological risks associated with current and potential future uses of the site.

The approximately 33-acre site was formerly used to treat cut wood with a chromate copper arsenate (CCA) solution. The site formerly operated as the Johns Manville Glass Fiber Manufacturing Plant from 1908 until approximately 2006.

The applicant is currently demolishing all buildings at the site in preparation to conduct further investigation of any potential soil or groundwater contamination.

West Virginia’s Voluntary Remediation and Redevelopment Act encourages voluntary clean-ups of contaminated sites, as well as redevelopments of abandoned and under-utilized properties, in the hope of counteracting the lack of growth on sites with contamination or perceived contamination. The Voluntary Program seeks to identify and address potential contamination at a given site. It also sets applicable remediation standards and confirms that the site maintains these standards.

As long as a company is following all the rules and regulations of the Voluntary Program, typical DEP enforcement actions, as well as liability under environmental laws, will be limited while the company cleans up a site. The Voluntary Program also gives companies the ability to redevelop sites with existing industrial infrastructure at a lower price, and provides financial incentives to invest in Brownfields.

Questions regarding the Voluntary Remediation and Redevelopment Act, or this application, may be directed to either: David Hight, Project Manager; WVDEP, DLR/OER, by calling (304) 926¬-0499, Ext. 1268 or Matthew C. Wright, Licensed Remediation Specialist, Triad Engineering, Inc., 4980 Teays Valley Road, Scott Depot, WV 25560, (304) 755-0721.