Company in West Virginia spill moving chemicals to Pennsylvania | StateImpact Pennsylvania Skip Navigation

Company in West Virginia spill moving chemicals to Pennsylvania

The company at the center of a major chemical spill that compromised drinking water supplies for 300,000 people in West Virginia will move thousands of gallons of the chemical to Pennsylvania, the Associated Press reports.
Early last month, at least 7,500 gallons of a foaming agent used in coal production, known as 4-methylcyclohexane methanol (or MCHM) spilled into the Elk River.
More from the AP: 

Freedom Industries expected to move 3,500 gallons of crude MCHM from its Nitro facility to a coal facility in Pennsylvania on Tuesday. The Department of Environmental Protection warned that it could mean unsavory licorice smells for neighbors.
Freedom’s parent company is owned by J. Clifford Forrest, who runs Kittanning-based Rosebud Mining Co.
Freedom expects to move more chemicals in upcoming weeks. It’s unclear where the chemicals are heading.
State environmental regulators ordered Freedom to remove all chemicals from the Charleston site of the Jan. 9 spill. But when Freedom began transferring to Nitro, officials declared that facility unsafe. The state ordered Freedom to fix its issues or move to a different facility.

Up Next

Democratic candidates slam Corbett's fiscal policies at forum