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By MARY K. BLEWITT
Arundel Newspapers State Writer
Avtex Fibers officials attempted to set the record straight on events leading up to their plant shut down as they await a decision from a Richmond Circuit Court judge regarding state allegations that Avtex polluted the Shenandoah River with PCBs.
State representatives ignored plans submitted by Avtex for a more organized shutdown, said John N. Gregg, board chairman of Avtex, in a statement released last Thursday, Nov. 16. Burt Rohrer, spokesman for the attorney general’s office, refuted Gregg’s story, saying no such plans were ever delivered.
The aging rayon-manufacturing company turned off its power and ended its 50 years of production on a hectic Friday Nov. 10, seeding fear of a release of toxic gases rippling through Front Royal and Warren County.
The plant shutdown came as a result of the State Water Control Board’s decision to revoke Avtex’s waste water discharge permit. State tests indicate that Avtex is responsible for PCBs — or polchlorinated byphenyls
being leaked into the Shenandoah River. Other evidence suggests that the company was aware of the possibility of contamination as far back as 1986. State Police are currently looking into allegations that Avtex deliberately dumped the PCBs.
“Commonwealth officials elected to ignore plans previously submitted by Avtex for a more orderly shutdown of the facility,” said Gregg. “They, along with officials of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), were well aware of the consequences of the water board’s decision to force an immediate shutdown.”
Responding to the charges, state officials indicated Gregg’s comments were laced with lies.
“I would argue that they never had a plan at all,” said Rohrer. “The only plan we saw was a plan to stay in business.”
The state law office did, however, receive a response, requested three weeks ago, outlining the steps involved in a plant shutdown. The process, received the afternoon of the plant closure, was never submitted as a proposal, said Rohrer. It was also late, he added.
The EPA, too, disputed Gregg’s words, saying that Avtex officials never made clear, their plans to shut down the entire plant.
“We’re seeing things a little bit differently,” said Bill Toffel, EPA communications officer. Avtex officials notified the EPA that the water board had revoked their permit, but did not relate their plans to close the plant, according to Toffel. While Avtex maintained that the water board’s actions forced the plant’s permanent shut down, Toffel contended that the plant could continue to operate without the use of its waste water treatment plant.
Following the close dawn, EPA and state officials became concerned that carbon disulfide within the plant had not been properly secured. The chemical, which is harmful if inhaled, is kept in liquid form by water pumped into the chemical holding tanks. State and federal environmental agencies did not-know until late Friday evening that Avtex had left power to generate the water pumps.
Other concerns spawned by discontinued operations of the plant related to rayon-producing equipment that risked permanent damage when it was shut down in mid-process. Raw viscose circulating through the machines hardens within a few days.
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