Biweekly update 5/08/25
Removal work is underway at the Fairmont Brine site.
Activities include:
- Removed contaminated material from inside the upper complex building, and packaged material for offsite disposal.
- Conducted bench scale tests for on-site waste solidification
- Removed contaminated filter cake material from 5 of the 6 roll-off containers on the site. The material was repackaged into shippable containers and secured on-site.
- Empty roll-off containers were secured and staged onsite for future disposal
- Conducted air monitoring for radiation and particulates throughout the duration of site activities.
- No air exceedances have been observed indicating that no airborne contamination is leaving the site.
- All personnel, tools, and vehicles, were screened prior to exiting the hot zone to ensure contamination does not exit the zone.
Security cameras have been installed at the
site allowing for 24/7 video surveillance.
The EPA and contractor personnel regularly
screen AFR Drive with radiation monitoring equipment.
EPA will begin packaging TENORM contaminated
materials for disposal in the near future pending waste characterization
results.
Previous site updates have been archived and
made publicly available under the “Documents” tab. The most recent document can
be found here: Archived Site Updates 5/8/2025
Site
Overview:
The Fairmont Brine site is located at 168 AFR
Drive in Fairmont, West Virginia. The Brine processing facility was constructed
between 2009 and 2010 by the AOP Clearwater LLC. The plant was acquired
by Fairmont Brine Processing (FBP) in 2012. FBP began pre-treatment
operations at the site in 2013 and fully
operated the plant in fall of 2014. FBP ceased operations at the
site in March 2018.
The plant accepted flowback and produced fluids , known as "Brine" from the
hydraulic fracturing process used to extract natural gas. FBP used chemical and carbon filter media,
multiple-effect evaporation, and crystallization to treat and process the brine
they received. This produced sodium chloride, calcium chloride, and distilled
water. By-products created from the process include sludge
and filter cake material. Produced fluids from fracking operations
can contain Technically Enhanced Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials,
known as "TENORM". Click
here to learn more about TENORM.
On May 30, 2023, there was a fire and subsequent explosion
at the site damaging an above ground storage tank and the upper process
building. Following the fire, elevated readings of TENORM radiation were
found in several areas of the site. Click here
for general information about radiation sources and doses.
