WHEELING, W.Va. (AP) — Trans Energy Inc. will pay $600,000 in fines after pleading guilty to federal pollution charges.
U.S. Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld II says the St. Marys-based company admitted dumping rock, sand and other materials into streams in Marshall County to create impoundments. The company used water from the impoundments for natural gas drilling.
Trans Energy pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Wheeling to three counts of negligent discharge of pollutants without a permit. Each count carries a $200,000 fine.
Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a $3 million civil settlement with Trans Energy regarding similar violations at 15 sites in the state.
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