Fairmont Coke Works
The Fairmont Coke Works was a Sharon Steel Corporation-operated works site in Fairmont, West Virginia, dubbed the Sharon Steel / Fairmont Coke works site.[1] It was later classified as a Superfund site. After decades of remediation, plots of the land have been redeveloped.
History
[edit]Period of operation
[edit]It was built in 1918 by the Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey, and in 1948, purchased by Sharon Steel Corporation.[1]
Pollution at the site was reported to impact nearby residents, as well as workers. On a routine patrol of the adjacent river, the Monongahela, an inspector for the state water resources department reported "bubbling action" 20 feet from the shore line, and discovered a pipe leading directly to the Sharon coke ovens at the site. Another was found in a cave, in what the inspector called "willful pollution." In a 1979 state air pollution inspection, coke ovens were in some cases collapsing, allowing gas to escape. Sharon Steel shut the coke works on May 31, 1979, firing 200 people.[2]
Superfund classification and remediation
[edit]Sharon had been facing $300 million in federal fines for pollution, although, in 1982, the EPA agreed to drop the fines if Sharon handled the hazardous waste cleanup itself.[3] While the EPA ordered Sharon to handle the waste, Fairmont officials began work on an ordinance to limit Sharon's ability to receive a burial permit.[4]
In June 1983, Fairmont officials passed an ordinance targeted at Sharon, which banned the permanent disposal of hazardous waste in the city limits.[3] The 1983 ordinance took precedence over EPA regulations and state officials, and forbid Sharon from burying the site's waste, including heavy metals, phenols, cyanide, coal tars, and sulphuric acids.[4] Sharon contested the law to higher courts, arguing it preempted state and federal regulations. In 1985, a judge gave the company an order to control its pollution in Fairmont.[3]
Redevelopment plans
[edit]In 2006, a water park was being built on part of the property.[5]
In 2016, the EPA was in talks over addressing contaminated land at the works site.[1] ExxonMobil was involved in the redevelopment. In 2018, a portion of the redeveloped site was being used as the West Virginia State Trooper 1 Headquarters.[6]
In 2021, after remediation, the City of Fairmont requested development proposals for a 67-acre track of land. It had been vacant for decades, and once mostly an empty field. Other chunks of land were still being cleaned.[7]
In 2022, the Fairmont City Council was considering developing the land.[8]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 EPA announces plans to address contamination at Fairmont Coke Works site: MAP, Times West Virginian, 15 July 2016, retrieved 7 June 2024
- ↑ Reutter, Mark (August 1991), The Raider & the Coal Town, Facing South, retrieved 26 October 2025
- 1 2 3 Steel firm agrees to control pollution, Somerset, Pennsylvania: The Daily American, 7 February 1985, retrieved 7 June 2024
- 1 2 Repanshek, Kurt J. (July 11, 1983), Court bans Sharon from burying Fairmont Wastes, Associated Press / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, retrieved 26 October 2025
- ↑ Lash, Cindi (October 31, 2006), W.Va. developers unveil big plans for $87 million water park, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, retrieved 26 October 2025
- ↑ EPA recognizes ExxonMobil and Enzo Properties with Site Reuse Award, 12WBOY, June 7, 2018, retrieved 26 October 2025
- ↑ Mark Shaver, John (October 6, 2021), Marion Co., West Virginia, officials have high hopes for old Sharon Steel site development, West Virginia: The Fairmont News, retrieved 26 October 2025
- ↑ Shriver, Savanna (March 24, 2022), Fairmont City Council hears plan to develop autonomous vehicle testing facility, Times West Virginian, retrieved 2 June 2024