LOCAL

Fugitive dust complaint in Enka draws air quality probe

Dillon Davis
The Citizen-Times
The Jacob Holm plant in Enka in 2015.

This story has been updated with new details of the incident.

ASHEVILLE — An official from the Western North Carolina Regional Air Quality Agency found the source of a fugitive dust complaint made over the weekend in Enka.

Agency Director David Brigman on Saturday located large piles of waste on the ground at the Jacob Holm Industries plant in Candler. The agency said Monday a plug at the bottom of the cyclone where waste material is conveyed became loose Saturday morning, causing material to blow onto the ground and also onto a nearby trailer. The trailer was moved to the other side of the building where it is assumed waste blew off of it beyond the Jacob Holm property.

Workers were on the site over the weekend cleaning up debris, largely comprised of leftover materials of a cellulose product used to manufacture non-woven uncoated industrial wipes.

WNC Regional Air Quality Agency called the incident "a solid waste issue and a fugitive dust problem." Fugitive dust is another term for small airborne particles, usually found near construction sites and unpaved roads.

The Jacob Holm material is non-hazardous, the agency said.

The agency's probe stemmed from a video shared on Facebook Saturday by DeBruhl's Used Car Superstore owner Linsey DeBruhl. In his nearly two-minute video, DeBruhl shows off small specks of white debris on used cars in his Asheville lot, expressing concern for what it could mean for air quality in the community.

As of Monday, the video was shared about 3,000 times.

"The bad thing is if your kids are up playing ballgame at the Enka football night or are out running around, playing in the yard, in the dark, this is what they're inhaling," he says in the video. "Fiber, fiber, fiber. And it's coming from a local plant."

Brigman told the Citizen-Times it is uncommon for the agency to get complaints on industrial activity, though it attempts to address them directly whenever they come. He met with company officials Monday, remarking they were "very forthcoming" in taking steps to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Air quality staff are expected to return to the facility to determine if Jacob Holm requires an air quality permit. The company was determined not to need an air quality permit at the time of its opening.

It isn't the first time the company has been investigated for its environmental impact. WNC Regional Air Quality Agency previously looked into Jacob Holm last year after waste material was reported leaving the property. An investigation revealed the most likely source was waste material being blown off trucks from a rusted out transport bin as it exited the facility on Sardis Road.

No air quality regulations were violated during the 2016 incident. 

Jacob Holm did not immediately respond to a reporter's email for comment.