Apr 23, 2014 By The 3 min read

The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued a report on Wednesday concluding that no pollutants that would indicate a potential health concern for local residents or emergency responders were found as a result of the Greene County Chevron gas well fire.

“In order to ensure public health and safety, DEP immediately went to work on an aggressive sample regimen,” DEP Secretary E. Christopher Abruzzo stated in a news release. “It was a top priority of the department to be certain that emergency response workers and nearby residents were not harmed by any emissions caused by this incident.”

Personnel from the DEP took samples from several locations, both upwind and downwind of the well pad. Sampling was conducted from Feb. 12, the day after the fire began, to Feb. 20, when the well was capped, according to the news release. Those samples were analyzed for 57 toxic air pollutants.

The first explosion occurred at the Lanco 7H gas well in Dunkard Township. The fire from that well then ignited the adjacent 6H well.

Ian McKee, 27, of Warren, a field technician for Cameron International, a contractor working at the well, was killed in the explosion and a co-worker was injured.

While none of the pollutant levels in the DEP samples was found to be a threat to health, there were higher concentrations of propene, heptane and 1, 2, 4-trimethylbenzene than are typically found in other rural areas across the state, the report stated. However, the agency indicated it cannot verify that these concentrations occurred because of the fire and uncontrolled gas leak.

According to the DEP, heptane often comes from crude oil and is used in paints and solvents; 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene is usually found in coal tar or oil; and the higher concentrations of propene are believed to have come from nearby storage tanks.

The department used air-sampling canisters daily to collect both “grab” samples and 24-hour samples in its efforts to determine potential public exposure to air pollution from the incident, the report states.

By comparing the sample readings with historic toxic air concentrations at three other air-monitoring sites in the state, analysts were able to determine the extent of any toxic pollution during the incident. The control sites served as a benchmark to show typical air quality for this region of the state, providing the department with a better understanding of any impact that may have been a result of the incident.

The DEP cited Chevron earlier this month for nine violations related to the well fire, including the gas company’s alleged failure to allow DEP emergency response personnel to have free access to the site immediately following the explosion.

The DEP claims it wasn’t until Abruzzo arrived at the scene on Feb. 12 and talked to Chevron officials that Chevron allowed DEP personnel on the well pad.

Chevron representative Lee Ann Wainwright has said no one, not even company personnel, was allowed on the well pad until a company that specializes in extinguishing well fires arrived and assessed the fire.

The other violation notices allege that Chevron failed to maintain the integrity of the well pad, uncontrolled burning, uncontrolled release of gas into the air and releasing water on to the well pad, the DEP reported.

The DEP and Chevron are still investigating the cause of the explosion.