Little Blue Run Residual Waste Disposal Impoundment

USA / West Virginia / Chester /
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Yes...it really is that blue in real life. The "Blue Lake," as it is known by locals, is owned by the Bruce Mansfield Coal Plant (owned by First Energy) and this is where they dump their coal ashes and mix them in with lime. The lake was designed so that it would harden like cement but it didn't work so now you have a lake that looks like the Bahamas in Pennsylvania / West Virginia. It was originally built in the late 1970s and is reaching capacity. You can see it by traveling through some back roads in West Virginia but the Pennsylvania side has been gated down. Nothing lives in the lake due to the chemicals that are in the water and it is very eerie back there.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   40°36'48"N   80°31'2"W

Comments

  • spooky
  • It used to be a valley that had houses. The plant bought the area then flooded it, and most accounts say they didn't even tear down the houses. It is an interesting sight, and most times it smells horrible on a hot day.
  • Ain't nothin' wrong with Ol' Blue.
  • also, there are very tiny blue ponds in this area also from the power plants. and people also say that it is blue because it is pure ( by being used in the local Nuclear power plants)
  • This satellite view has not been updated since 2003 or so. It's no longer got its blue hue, and most of the water is gone. It looks like a drained field of mud. Still, the complete lack of wildlife and the many black rubber tubes around the area make it really eerie.
  • the summer sun maks it look better
  • That would be an incredible sight scuba diving down there if there were houses still there like ashlea up there said.
  • @John yeah except for the lime, it'd be toxic I'd think...
  • And everyone is complaining about oilfield poluting water... Wow
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This article was last modified 15 years ago