The W&G Electroplating Site is the location of a former facility which was primarily involved in replating hydraulic arms and cylinders for heavy construction and mining equipment. It is located off Route 73, one-half mile south of Boothsville, Taylor County, West Virginia. The Site is situated on a floodplain of Booths Creek, 8.5 miles from its confluence with the West Fork River.
The primary electroplating tank in the facility had a capacity of 1,500 gallons and was located in a concrete block sump. Over time, the condition of the concrete block sump deteriorated, and chromic acid leached from the sump into the groundwater, subsequently contaminating the soil between the facility and Booths Creek.
An intial EPA Removal action began at the site in August 1991, and culminated with the transfer of the site groundwater recovery system to WVDEP in the Spring of 1996. On October 15, 2014, WVDEP formally requested that U.S. EPA take back the site due to a lack of funds.
As recently as 8/27/14, elevated levels of hexavalent chromium were found in the groundwater beneath the site. After 4 rounds of sampling, most recently in December 2015, it was confirmed that hexavalent chromium is entering Booths Creek.
On Sept. 27, 2017, the Director of Region 3's Hazardous Site Cleanup Division authorized funding for a Permeable Reactive Barrier (PRB) along Booths Creek to prevent hexavalent chromium from entering the Creek from the Site. The PRB will contain zero valent iron to convert the hexavalent chromium to a less toxic and less mobile trivalent form.
