Browns Mountain Quarry
Mountaintop Removal in Pocahontas County!

Waco Oil and Gas of Glennville, WV is seeking a permit from DEP to strip mine 79 acres of a 248 acre parcel they have purchased on Browns Mountain along Knapps Creek on Rt. 39 between Huntersville and Minnehaha Springs, Pocahontas County, WV. The site is across from the well-known Devil's Backbone arch exposed along the highway.

They plan to remove at least three hundred feet of rock from the east side of the mountain to obtain the Tuscarora Sandstone (or White Medina Sandstone), which is used as a non-skid aggregate in road construction.

This is the same rock that forms Seneca Rocks and would presumably be used for Corridor H construction. Presumably, after the east side would be quarried, they could apply to the DEP to extend the quarry to the west side of the mountain, thereby removing the whole thing.

What they are proposing is the equivalent of mountain top removal in an area with no coal and no other mining. The water gap formed by Knapps Creek as it cuts through Browns Mountain is one of the most scenic areas in West Virginia. Knapps Creek, a tributary of the Greenbrier, is stocked with trout by the DNR. Strip mining in this location would create a permanent scar on the landscape and probably destroy the creek for trout fishing downstream of the quarry.

This quarry arguably would have a negative impact on tourism for many years to come (visible from the main road, truck traffic, dust, noise, lights) and would certainly permanently change a beautiful landscape.

What you can do. Get the word out to everyone you know who is concerned about the mountains of Eastern West Virginia, the Greenbrier River watershed, the Mon forest, etc. Get them to write letters right now to request a hearing. Contact Norm Wolcott to offer assistance. This group is going to have to pay lawyers and mount a huge PR campaign! Send money! This company is rich and powerful and our laws are weak.

Interested persons/bodies should write to the DEP and quote BOTH permit numbers, the NPDES and the Quarry number, and mention the items of concern for each permit and request a public hearing to raise those issues to arrive at DEP before February 2, 2002.

The NPDES is a water discharge permit. We have not been able to find out anything about an air quality permit for the crusher.

The NPDES Application # is; WV 1017471

The Quarry application # is SMA Q-2017-00

The address of DEP is:

Permit Supervisor
Department of Environmental Protection
Suite 301
105 S. Railroad St.
Phillipi, WV 26416