A fire burning in Deerfield Township is now believed to be the result of combusted coal mine refuse, also known as a "gob fire," after an investigation by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources last week.
Portage County Emergency Services is monitoring the air on and surrounding the burn site and said at this time it poses no threat to the public. Spokesperson McKenzie Villatoro said they are asking people to remain away from the site of the fire for their safety.
Because of the burn site’s location adjacent to an unpermitted landfill, an EPA Superfund site and abandoned strip mine, it was not initially clear what kind of material was burning or for how long. The affected area is on private property at the intersection of state routes 224 and 225.
While ODNR does not consider the fire to be underground, it was below a layer of soil and vegetation, making only smoke visible to the naked eye.
“What we're dealing with here is the combustion of that waste material that was left on the surface of the earth in a big pile that looks like it really is the terrain, but it isn't,” said Jennifer Woodman, chief of ODNR’s Division of Mineral Resources Management.
Woodman said the suspected cause of the fire was line maintenance on a nearby oil well, which allowed oxygen to reach the gob material and spark flames.
While it may sound alarming, a gob fire isn’t all that uncommon, according to Woodman.
“Fires like this can be partially or fully concealed and could persist for periods of time without ever being discovered,” she said. “They do occur in Ohio, both on active permitted mine sites as well as abandoned mine sites like this one.”
The former strip mine in Deerfield dates back to what Woodman calls "pre-law mining," which took place before the passage of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.
The federal law set national regulations for coal mines, creating permits and a reclamation process.
While the Deerfield site is still smoldering, it no longer appears to be actively on fire, according to ODNR. Last week, members of ODNR’s Abandoned Mines Reclamation team covered the area in an extra layer of soil to prevent further oxygen from reaching the gob.
Later this month, the material will be removed from the site and placed in a manmade pond to cool it down. Woodman said the timeline of that work will depend on contractor availability but hopes a team will be deployed Oct. 26.
