RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Labor uncovered an illegal mining operation in Mitchell County, leading to state enforcement action against the unpermitted site operated by Horizon 30, LLC.
According to the North Carolina Department of Labor (NCDOL) press release, the agency discovered the illegal mine in Poplar after the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration requested the NCDOL to give miner safety training at the site. During that visit, an NCDOL official “identified multiple irregularities and questioned whether the site had the required state environmental permits.”
“This is exactly why I’ve made it a priority to support and empower our field staff,” said Labor Commissioner Luke Farley. “Their experience, judgment, and vigilance are critical to keeping workers safe and enforcing the law.”
“If our staff hadn’t gone above and beyond their duty to protect workers, this illegal operation could have continued unnoticed — putting lives at risk and undermining public trust in our regulatory system,” Farley said.
When Horizon 30 failed to produce necessary documentation, the NCDOL official alerted the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ), which confirmed the operation was unauthorized and violated state mining laws. Legal proceedings are now underway to shut down the operation.
NCDEQ inspection reports and letters list those involved with Horizon 30 as Brent Fernandes, Sean Chipman, Bruce Carter and Theodore Carter. None of the business records or letters to Horizon 30 provides a point of contact beyond a mailing address, inhibiting attempts to reach Horizon 30 for comment.
According to North Carolina Secretary of State records, Horizon 30 has an office on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh and a main office in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The organization was registered in North Carolina on May 29. Those records show the registrant as Brent Fernandes, who has a California address, according to NCDEQ notice letters.
Pennsylvania Secretary of State records show Horizon 30’s initial creation date as April 25, 2018.
The permit Horizon 30 applied for allows mining in an area over 50 acres. Excavations cover approximately 23 of those acres, aimed at producing solid granite ballast and stone compositions intended for emergency repairs of Hurricane Helene-damaged CSX railroad lines.
In a statement to media outlets, CSX Railroad wrote their company “has continued to work within the required regulatory framework to complete the critical infrastructure restoration project on the Blue Ridge Subdivision. We decline to comment on the practices of other companies.”
Area residents told Fox News Digital that Horizon 30’s operation along the Nolichucky River has killed animals, and some blamed respiratory deaths on dust plumes coming from the mining site. Resident Leo Sharp submitted drone footage to Fox News Digital showing activity at the mining site.
Horizon 30 received multiple communications regarding its permit issues, including a March 7, 2025, Notice of Regulatory Requirement telling the company it was operating a site that required a permit under the North Carolina Mining Act. An additional violation letter went out June 5.
A little over a month later, on April 11, NCDEQ received an incomplete application, and on May 6, Horizon 30 received a Notice of Violation (NOV) for mining without a permit that required the company to cease all related mining activities and directing Horizon 30 to either submit a complete a mining permit application or restore the site.
A complete application was received May 16, when the permit application fee was received.
Eleven days later, NCDEQ did a follow-up inspection, which showed that violations outlined in the NOV had not been rectified and additional mining had occurred at the site since the inspection on April 23.
In a letter dated May 16, Horizon 30 CFO Sean Chipman responded to the NOV, writing that the site was providing necessary materials for emergency rebuilding of the CSX Blue Ridge Subdivision railroad service lines damaged from Tropical Storm Helene.
Chipman stated that Horizon 30 “relies upon emergency permits, authorizations, waivers and other applicable allowances for services supporting Emergency Railway Repairs and Executive Orders of the President of the United States, including those supporting the America First initiative and energy independence, as well as prior and concurrent emergency response directives.”
Chipman also wrote the company had made “corrective measures” to address issues presented by NCDEQ in its earlier letter.
On July 21, the North Carolina Department of Justice filed for an injunction in Mitchell County against Horizon 30 on behalf of NCDEQ. Even though a complaint was filed, NCDEQ held a public hearing on July 29 on Horizon 30’s application for the mining site in Mitchell County. Chipman was notified of the hearing by letter.
On Aug. 11, Superior Court Judge Ted McIntire agreed to the state’s request for a temporary injunction, with Horizon 30 immediately ceasing its operations. McIntire’s District 24 seat covers Avery, Madison, Mitchell, Watauga and Yancey counties.
Steven Weber, the lawyer representing Horizon 30, told the judge mining had stopped on Aug. 9, and the company would withdraw its current mining application and submit a new plan within 30 days.
McIntire’s order also stated material can no longer be moved off the site and Horizon 30 must submit a remediation plan to NCDEQ within 30 days. Any violations of the order could result in civil and criminal penalties.
An additional hearing is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 23.
