CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Coalfield residents hope preliminary lab results showing their water is unsafe to drink will spur lawmakers to stop coal slurry from being put in the water.
At a Capitol press conference Thursday, members of the Sludge Safety Project released an independent study on water and slurry samples from six sites in the state. An analysis found the samples contained concentrations of various metals that exceed federal primary drinking water standards.
"We're making the case to say there's enough data here, now, to say, 'Enough,'" said Patricia Feeney, a coordinator with the Sludge Safety Project.
After coal is washed in a mixture of water and chemicals, it's pumped underground into abandoned mines or into coal waste impoundments.
The state Department of Environmental Protection has missed deadlines on a study the Legislature mandated on the safety of that practice. The DEP gave samples from the sites to Wheeling Jesuit University, which then sent them to the National Center for Water Quality Research in Ohio.
The analysis found that concentrations of six metals - antimony, arsenic, lead, barium, cadmium and chromium - exceeded federal standards for primary drinking water. It also found "exceptionally high" concentrations of metals in the solid slurry samples from all the sites.
Coalfield residents said the water has sickened their families, and they held photographs showing brown, thick water in their sinks.
"The DEP is not protecting us," said Chuck Nelson, a Raleigh County resident. "We are not protected, and our health is being put at risk."
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Coalfield residents hope preliminary lab results showing their water is unsafe to drink will spur lawmakers to stop coal slurry from being put in the water.
At a Capitol press conference Thursday, members of the Sludge Safety Project released an independent study on water and slurry samples from six sites in the state. An analysis found the samples contained concentrations of various metals that exceed federal primary drinking water standards.
"We're making the case to say there's enough data here, now, to say, 'Enough,'" said Patricia Feeney, a coordinator with the Sludge Safety Project.
After coal is washed in a mixture of water and chemicals, it's pumped underground into abandoned mines or into coal waste impoundments.
The state Department of Environmental Protection has missed deadlines on a study the Legislature mandated on the safety of that practice. The DEP gave samples from the sites to Wheeling Jesuit University, which then sent them to the National Center for Water Quality Research in Ohio.
The analysis found that concentrations of six metals - antimony, arsenic, lead, barium, cadmium and chromium - exceeded federal standards for primary drinking water. It also found "exceptionally high" concentrations of metals in the solid slurry samples from all the sites.
Coalfield residents said the water has sickened their families, and they held photographs showing brown, thick water in their sinks.
"The DEP is not protecting us," said Chuck Nelson, a Raleigh County resident. "We are not protected, and our health is being put at risk."
Sen. Randy White, D-Webster, has introduced legislation that would ban injection permits beginning in May. He said he fears the findings released Thursday are "just the beginning," and urged action on his proposal.
The Rev. Dennis Sparks, director of the West Virginia Council of Churches, said the issue is a top concern for his group.
"We're glad the study is here," Sparks said. "But if our Legislature really cared, they would have acted before there was a study."
DEP spokeswoman Kathy Cosco said Thursday that results of the Legislature-mandated study would be ready in May. Then, the Department of Health and Human Resources will determine whether there is a health threat.
Delays on the DEP study "have not been intentional," Cosco said.
"We realized this was far more complicated and complex than what we thought it would be, and probably what the Legislature thought it would be," she said. "The complexity of the issue, and the policy decisions that will be made based on the findings of this study, warranted the time we took."
Besides the ban on slurry injection, members of the Sludge Safety Project also want emergency drinking water to be provided to residents near coal slurry sites, and for DHHR to submit a budget and timeline for their portion of the study.
Reach Alison Knezevich at alis...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1240.
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