Iowa DNR orders Marengo plant to stop operations after explosion

Iowa regulators have slapped an emergency order on a Marengo company after a Dec. 8 explosion, calling the C6-Zero facility a “clear threat to public health and the environment” because of “unknown flammable chemicals and gases” remaining in a damaged building.

“Despite repeated information requests from the (Iowa Department of Natural Resources) and meetings in which compliance matters were discussed, C6-Zero and Mr. Howard Brand have failed to comply with Iowa’s air quality, hazardous condition, solid waste and legitimate recycling laws,” according to the order signed Thursday, and released Friday, by Iowa DNR Director Kayla Lyon.

“The facility is not legitimately recycling materials and must cease operations. All solid waste remaining at the facility must be immediately and properly disposed of.”

The state ordered C6-Zero to:

The order notes regulators may impose civil penalties of up to $5,000 per day for solid waste violations and water quality violations and up to $10,000 per day for air quality violations.

“The DNR reserves the right to impose, or to ask the Attorney General to pursue, civil penalties for the violations referenced in this Emergency Order and for any other violations that have yet to be discovered,” the order states. “At this time, the DNR’s primary focus is on protecting human health and the environment at and around the C6-Zero facility.”

C6-Zero describes itself as a recycler of used asphalt shingles, with founder Howard Brand III attempting to use a proprietary solvent to dissolve the shingles into component parts of oil, sand and fiberglass.

The Marengo plant, which opened in 2020 and had about 30 employees, still was in a pilot phase Dec. 8 when liquid solvent in a tank exploded and started a fire. Between 10 and 15 people were treated for injuries at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and neighbors living near the facility were briefly evacuated.

A GoFundMe campaign for Cody Blasberg, a father and C3-Zero employee, said he “took the brunt of the explosion” and was severely burned and in critical condition in the days after the blast. The campaign had raised over $11,000 of a $25,000 goal by Friday.

Brand, too, was injured in the blast, Mark Corallo, a consultant with C6-Zero, told The Gazette earlier this week. Corallo did not respond Friday afternoon to a request about the Iowa DNR order.

The 12-page order outlines when and how the Iowa DNR first learned about C6-Zero operating in the state.

The agency’s Field Office 6 staff, in Washington, Iowa, first talked with company representatives May 13, 2021, when Brand and another employee told Iowa DNR staff their plan was to “reverse manufacture” shingles. They said they were not subject to Iowa’s solid waste or other environmental regulations.

C6-Zero told the state that “the company has a ‘clean bill of health’ in the other states where it has previously operated, including Texas, Louisiana and Colorado,” the order states.

Colorado and Texas officials told The Gazette earlier this week about environmental concerns they had with Brand under his company’s previous names of Brand Technologies and BrandLich Holdings.

Iowa DNR officials learned about these concerns in late May 2021, but visits to the Marengo site through December 2021 didn’t show the stockpiles of shingles that had been problems elsewhere.

But on April 7, Iowa DNR staff attempted to visit C6-Zero and were denied entry.

“C6-Zero staff refused to allow the DNR staff to enter and inspect the facility, stating at one point that the DNR had no right to be on the property,” the order states.

On May 24, the state got notice from Jeff Boeyink, former chief of staff to former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, that C6-Zero had hired Boeyink’s LS2 Group to “help the company navigate the regulatory environment in Iowa.”

But from May to November, C6-Zero staff did not answer the Iowa DNR’s questions about their manufacturing process and air emissions, the order states.

Iowa DNR air, solid waste and field office staff visited the C6-Zero plant Nov. 9 for a scheduled meeting and tour, the order states.

“The tour was halted part-way at the direction of C6-Zero staff. DNR staff stated that they wanted to see the rest of the facility but were denied access. Mr. Brand stated that they would have to set up a subsequent tour to see the rest of the facility,” the order states.

On. Dec. 5, just three days before the fire and explosion, Iowa DNR staff contacted Boeyink to get C6-Zero to submit a Tier II report, which identifies hazardous chemicals stored in the building. Boeyink said he would forward the request to C6-Zero’s attorney, but the state never heard back, the order states.

Since the explosion, Iowa DNR staff have had access to the burned and waterlogged building, where they saw “multiple large ankle-deep pools” of oily substance and missing walls and ceiling portions suggesting the building isn’t stable, the order states.

“Inside the building are large quantities of unknown chemicals in buckets, barrels, and gas tanks, along with big piles of loose, crushed shingles, all of which are exposed to wind, rain, and changing temperatures,” the order states.

Water samples taken from nearby waterways show evidence of pollution from the site, the agency reported.

“There is no security around the facility, and there appears to be nothing at the facility to prevent such an event from happening again.”

DNR C6-Zero Order by Gazetteonline on Scribd

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