Three containers of low-level radioactive waste were shipped from the PermaGrain Site in the Quehanna Wild Area, located in Black Moshannon State Forest, Clearfield County, on Thursday, June 10. They were transported by truck to Cleveland, where they were loaded onto rail cars for the remainder of the trip to Envirocare's disposal facility in Utah.
In 1955, 50,000 acres of state forest lands were sold to the Curtiss Wright Corporation, which developed nuclear jet engines and conducted research in nucleonics, metallurgy, electronics, chemicals and plastics. In addition to Curtiss Wright, various other industries using radiation in their manufacturing processes occupied the facility over several years.
The land was returned to the state in 1966 and is now managed as the Quehanna Wild Area by DCNR's Moshannon and Elk state forest districts. Several buildings from the former industrial operations are now occupied by PermaGrain, a manufacturer of specialty wood and tile flooring.