DEP Seeks Public Comment On Hardy County Log Fumigation Facility - West Virginia Public Broadcasting : West Virginia Public Broadcasting
NOTE:  There are substantial risks posed by this planned facility because of accidents, leaks, ruptures or fires as well as residual effects on plant workers and local residents. The molecular weight of methyl bromide is ca. 95. (off the top of my head) compared to air at 29.9.  Thus CH3Br when escaping as clouds of vapor will tend to remain at ground level and reside in low places rather than disperse.  Also, methyl bromide would hydrolyze slowly in contact with water vapor to form hydrobromic acid, a corrosive chemical. (I travel on US 48 and WV 259 near Baker, WV, frequently. Lost River State Park is a few miles south of this location.)
……. Duane Nichols, Mon Valley Clean Air Coalition.

https://wvpublic.org/dep-seeks-public-comment-on-hardy-county-log-fumigation-facility/

DEP Seeks Public Comment On Hardy County Log Fumigation Facility

Curtis Tate

DEP Seeks Public Comment On Hardy County Log Fumigation Facilitye

Published
One truck. Dozens of cut logs. Greenery from trees in the background.
A log truck transports a stack of freshly cut logs.
Hardy County residents have a few more weeks to submit comments on a state permit for a log fumigation facility.

Allegheny Wood Products plans to construct the log fumigation facility in Baker and has sought an air quality permit from the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP).

According to the company’s permit application, the facility will emit 9.4 tons a year of methyl bromide. Methyl bromide is a fumigant that kills fungi and wood-boring insects.

It is toxic. Prolonged exposure to the chemical can cause central nervous system and respiratory failures in humans, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

It also depletes ozone. It has been phased out since 2005 except for certain critical uses.

The DEP’s Division of Air Quality is seeking public comment by Friday, May 5. A public hearing may be held if the division’s director determines there is significant interest in the permit.