Our Research

Pour a big glass of Magnablend

In Magnablend's November 19, 2011 press release, Magnablend CEO Scott Pendery said "It is important to reiterate that air and water quality monitoring, both of which started within hours of the fire, have consistently shown that there are no significant levels of toxic substances impacting the community."

Magnablend reiterated this statement in their December 12, 2011 press release by stating "While additional property restoration activities continue, air and water quality monitoring has consistently shown that there are no significant levels of toxic substances impacting the community."

However, Magnablend stated in the same press release that they have built a pipeline to divert rainwater around the plant property and into a creek. They are also building a water holding tank and will leave the tank and pipeline in place "until it is determined that surface water on the property is suitable for discharge to the downstream receiving bodies."

Our question is if the water is safe, as consistently reported by Magnablend, then why the expensive effort to divert water around the plant and continue to isolate new water that reaches the property?

Magnablend's repetitive statements about no significant levels of toxic substances impacting the community does not change the physical proof the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released in their water sample results. The water on-site and off-site contained multiple EPA exceedances of chemicals as we explained in the Toxicity Found in Tested Water article.

In addition, documents obtained from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) via a Freedom of Information Act request show that 1,800 fish died in one of the contaminated ponds on October 25, 2011. Brett Shipp of WFAA also reported this information.

Copper was found to be above the acute Risk-Based Exposure Limits (RBEL) in every testing location. Copper can create two problems for aquatic life. The first problem is that copper kills oxygen producing algae that decomposes and consumes oxygen. Without oxygen producing plant life in the pond, the pond could become oxygen depleted. Another problem for aquatic life is that copper is toxic. [Reference 1] [Reference 2] [Reference 3]

Magnablend's stance remains the fish kill was caused by an algae bloom as a result of chemical nutrients that entered the pond during the fire. Nutrients can cause some algae blooms that consume oxygen. However, no test results have been made available (or mentioned) to determine if the fish died from oxygen depletion, copper toxicity, or some other chemical. In addition to copper, the pond had aquatic acute toxicity and chronic toxicity RBEL's of other chemicals that create additional toxic hazards for aquatic life.

In a December 10, 2011 Waxahachie Daily Light article by Colleen Horning, Pendery dismissed the smell residents are still facing as a fish smell caused by rainwater from October 6, 2011. Horning quoted Kris Megahan, Magnablend Technical Director, blaming the odors residents are smelling on nutrients in the chemicals mixing with rain and pond water. Neither Pendery nor Megahan made any mention of the massive fish kill that occurred on October 25, 2011. Megahan repeated the claim that "the EPA and TCEQ continue to give us the OK that there is nothing toxic affecting these areas."

Once again, if the water is safe, why did 1,800 fish die, why is the TCEQ continuing testing water, and why did Magnablend spend an enormous amount of money to divert water away from the contaminated areas and trap water that does reach the site?

In Horning's December 12, 2011 article (second in the series), Megahan refers to a few storage tanks where water collected from the first day of fire fighting efforts is being stored. He stated the water "could be characteristic of a more hazardous type of water." This seems to be conflicting information from Magnablend because they have said throughout the entire ordeal that the water contained no significant levels of toxic substances (despite EPA water test results that show otherwise) and then they admit to collecting "a more hazardous type of water."

What happens when a rain event causes a breach in one of the contaminated ponds and Magnablend or its contractors are not there to monitor it? The water escapes and flows into Katy Lake.

Luckily a Waxahachie resident witnessed the breach and escaping water on the afternoon of December 3, 2011. After seeing the water running downstream to Katy Lake again on the morning of December 4, 2011, he realized that no one was taking any action to stop the breach and prevent more contaminated water from reaching Katy Lake. He proceeded to call the National Response Center (NRC) to file a report. The National Response center then notified Magnablend and other agencies, which prompted action to contain the breach.

It is unknown how much contaminated water reached Katy Lake. The breach was from the same contaminated pond the massive fish kill occurred in.

It is also important to note the statements made in the "Remedial Actions" section of the NRC report. "Local police and fire were on scene, contractors hired for clean up, all of the frac tanks are full at this time, time and money left the remediation process unfinished." These comments were added by the NRC; not provided by the resident caller. The frac tanks were full, so remediation process was unfinished? Time and money also left the remediation process unfinished? In other words, residents continue to be ignored, neighbors have to continue dealing with the pungent odors, and Magnablend slows the cleanup process because of time and money? Magnablend created this mess; they should be and need to be working 24-hours per day to clean up this mess.

As we reported on November 27, 2011, 74% of the chemicals found in the water samples are used in natural gas drilling applications. A more in-depth analysis and natural gas use comparison of chemicals that were found in the test samples or has been confirmed that Magnablend used at the Central Facility can be found in our December 12, 2011 article (with an Excel spreadsheet).

Despite the natural gas industry claiming hydrofracking does not contaminate ground water, the EPA released a report in December 2011 proving otherwise. The EPA concluded that hydrofracking does and did contaminate groundwater at multiple sites in Pavillion, Wyoming.

Another area of concern regarding surface and ground water is that the Magnablend Central Facility is an EPA registered pesticide producer as we reported on December 13, 2011.

Although the EPA conducted some tests for pesticides in the water samples, it appears they failed to test for specific pesticides that were on-site at the Magnablend Central Facility as can be confirmed by comparing the pesticides the EPA had the water tested for and the list of chemicals known to be on-site at the facility (view the multiple pages).

When Magnablend and Pendery are ready to be transparent, share raw water sample test results with the community, release to the community a full inventory of all chemicals that were on-site, and acknowledge that some residents are in-fact experiencing health problems, then maybe we will be ready to listen.

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