A limestone plant in Giles county has been ordered to pay $14,007 by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
The agency said in a consent order from January 22, the Lhoist plant is in violation of a compliance agreement, because the company failed to have continuous monitoring systems up and running for 1,172 hours last year, the equivalent of nearly 49 days.
The Lhoist Kimballton plant, located near Ripplemead, processes lime, which is used to produce steel.
Issues with air pollution violations with this plant date at least to 2017, when air monitoring began. In that year, levels of Sulphur dioxide were more than double the amount allowed by the EPA.
In 2022, the state Air Pollution Control Board added that portion of Giles County to its list of areas that do not attain national air quality standards.
DEQ has allowed the company to continue operations despite repeated violations, but the agency requires Lhoist to do regular monitoring of the air quality at their plant.
RadioIQ reached out to the company, which is based in Fort Worth Texas, but did not hear back.
