×
X logo

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox.

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)

You may opt-out anytime by clicking "unsubscribe" from the newsletter or from your account.

Austin Master Services Announces Groundwater Well Monitoring Results

MARTINS FERRY — Austin Master Services, an environmental services firm specializing in radioactive waste remediation, announced the latest groundwater monitoring test results from its Martins Ferry facility.

The results show no concern for the local water aquifer and highlight the impact made by previous industrial manufacturing processes conducted at the facility’s location, the company states in a news release.

The groundwater monitoring is conducted using a network of four monitoring wells situated around the Martins Ferry facility. Austin Master Services installed three of the wells in 2015, while the fourth well was installed by the previous facility owner. The wells have bottom depths of 33.6 to 37.3 feet below ground surface.

From March 2016 to December 2019 Austin Master Services conducted well tests on site by company-trained personnel. In September 2021, Civil & Environmental Consultants Inc. of Columbus, Ohio, was hired to perform semi-annual sampling.

According to the report, “sampling results to date indicate that the water quality in the vicinity of the facility has been significantly impacted by historical steel mill operations in the area,” and “the groundwater chemistry at these wells is more typical of what would be expected in the Ohio River floodplain. There is no evidence that the (Austin Master Services) facility operations have caused deterioration of the groundwater.”

The goal of the sampling program is to determine specific levels of oilfield fluids related to Austin Master Services operations. Oilfield fluids typically include items such as produced water and impaired water from hydraulic stimulation and contain specific ratios of bromide. According to the report, “the absence of bromide in the initial samples that were collected suggests a likely road salt origin for the chlorides at these wells” as previously reported.

Bromide was analyzed in the initial sampling in 2015. No bromide was detected in samples from the most recent sample run.

Another byproduct of oilfield fluids is the presence of Radium 226 and Radium 228. According to the report, “Radium 226 and 228, which are commonly associated with fluids generated from oil and gas operations, have consistently been within normal concentration ranges for groundwater.”

To address any unofficial sampling results, the report states, “Since the Radium 226 and Radium 228 activity is within normal ranges, it is assumed that the elevated gross alpha, similar to the heavy metals discussed above (within the report), is an artificial artifact introduced as a result of poor sampling procedures that resulted in sediment in the samples.”

“The test results support the fact that Austin Master Services operates in a safe manner,” said Chris Martin, spokesman for Austin Master Services. “We now have evidence that past operations on this site may be the driving factor to false claims against our company. Austin Master Services will continue to operate and serve the oil and gas industry throughout Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania.”

A copy of the groundwater well monitoring test is available on the Austin Master Services resource webpage – austinmasterservices.com/resource-area/groundwater-report/.

Austin Master Services will continue to conduct groundwater monitoring sampling and release the results when available, the company noted.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

Starting at $4.73/week.

Subscribe Today