In an effort to protect health and safety of employees and citizens, frac sand company EOG Resources has installed ambient air monitoring at each of its Chippewa County locations.
The company has installed 10-meter high towers at its processing plant in Chippewa Falls, and its mines in the towns of Cooks Valley and Howard.
The towers will measure ambient PM4 crystalline silica, sand particles that can be suspended in outdoor air and could cause the lung disease silicosis. Sampling will be done at upwind and downwind locations, measuring meteorological data such as wind speed and direction.
The samples from testing filters will be examined by an independent, accredited lab and reviewed by an expert. The results will then be reported to the state Department of Natural Resources for regular review.
The DNR is the regulating agency for all frac sand companies in the state.
