West Virginia industrial gas plant will pay $1.9 million for Ohio River pollution

NEW CUMBERLAND, W.Va. — A producer of industrial gas in West Virginia has agreed to pay $1.9 million to settle allegations that it violated the Clean Water Act by dumping copper, aluminum, residual chlorine, iron and phenolics into the Ohio River at levels above what was permitted, federal regulators said Friday.

Messer LLC produces liquid nitrogen, oxygen, argon, krypton and xenon at the facility in New Cumberland.

According to the EPA, the facility violated its pollution discharge permit at least 186 times since 2016. Messer assumed liability for the violations when it acquired the facility in 2019, the EPA said.

In addition to the civil penalty for exceeding discharge permits, which will be paid in equal amounts to the state and federal governments, Messer agreed to build a new treatment system and do more to inspect stormwater discharges, the statement said.