This article originally provided by The Charleston Gazette

December 17, 2002

Massey companies agree to fines of $200,000 for pollution releases

By Ken Ward Jr.
STAFF WRITER

Two Massey Energy subsidiaries have agreed to pay the maximum fines after admitting criminal violations of the federal Clean Water Act, a judge learned Monday.

Omar Mining Inc. and Independence Coal Inc. will each pay $200,000 in fines for illegal pollution discharges into Boone County streams.

Officials from the two Massey subsidiaries pleaded guilty Monday morning in U.S. Magistrate Court in Charleston.

Shane Harvey, Omar Mining’s secretary and a Massey in-house lawyer, and Mark Clemens, president of Independence Coal, entered the pleas on behalf of the companies.

Both stood before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Stanley and responded to a long series of questions that is typical in federal criminal plea hearings. Stanley scheduled sentencing for both companies for Feb. 24, but she must receive a presentencing report on the companies’ past practices before then.

In August, federal prosecutors charged Omar Mining and Independence in separate cases for violating pollution limits at mining operations along Robinson Creek, near Uneeda. The companies were charged in informations, which typically means that plea negotiations are in the works.

Under the federal Clean Water Act, it is illegal to discharge pollution into a stream except in accordance with the terms of a water discharge permit. Misdemeanor violations — such as those with which the Massey companies are charged — carry penalties of up to five years’ probation and fines of $200,000 or $25,000 per day of violation, whichever is greater.

Omar was charged in connection with an Aug. 12 incident, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Miller Bushong.

He said that Omar and Independence shared an inactive mine in which they disposed of water from active operations.

The water in the inactive mine “exceeded the safe level,” and “posed a safety risk” to workers in an adjacent, active underground mine, Bushong said at Monday’s hearing.

Federal mine safety inspectors ordered the company to start to dispose of the excess water elsewhere, and suggested a holding pond, Bushong said.

Instead, Omar officials pumped the water into another pond that used to contain heavy metals, Bushong said. The water mixed with the metals, and was released into Robinson Creek.

State Department of Environmental Protection inspectors found that the discharged water contained 85 milligrams per liter of solids, and 30 milligrams per liter of manganese, Bushong said. Omar’s permit limits were 70 milligrams per liter of solids, and 4 milligrams per liter of manganese, Bushong said.

During Monday’s hearing, Omar lawyer William Powell said that the company disagrees with Bushong’s statement that the inactive mine posed a safety danger to the adjacent miners.

“We have some disagreement with that, but those are not material aspects of the plan,” Bushong said.

Independence was charged in a June 18 leak of blackwater from its Liberty Processing Plant.

Bushong said that a pump at the plant began to leak. This triggered a sump pump that pumped blackwater into a holding pond, and eventually into Robinson Creek, he said.

He said that the plant supervisor allowed the discharge to continue until the next day, when the plant had scheduled a maintenance shift.

DEP inspectors found that the discharge contained 27,000 milligrams of solids.

Omar and Independence agreed to develop environmental compliance programs, including writing compliance manuals, training workers and producing an environmental compliance video, according to the plea agreements filed Monday.

Both companies also agreed to submit to the government independent environmental audits conducted previously this year, and promised to conduct similar audits every 18 months during whatever term of probation Stanley orders, the agreements said.

Over the last two years, Massey operations in Southern West Virginia have repeatedly been cited by regulators and sued by private citizens for a series of environmental problems.

The $400,000 in fines that Omar and Independence have agreed to pay amounts to less than half of Massey CEO Don Blankenship’s 2001 base salary of $881,000, according to corporate financial reports.

Richmond, Va.-based Massey is among the largest coal producers in Central Appalachia. In 2001, the company reported sales of $1.3 billion.

To contact staff writer Ken Ward Jr., use e-mail or call 348-1702.