A fixture in the Tunungwant Valley for decades, work will soon commence to demolish the American Refining Group Inc. boiler stack.

A $5.5 million investment replaced the refinery’s only remaining coal boiler in 2016. The company commissioned its new, environmentally friendly and compliant boiler that fall. All three of ARG’s massive boilers are now fired by cleaner, more-efficient natural gas, leaving no further need for the iconic stack.

Significant planning across all of ARG was required to prepare for this major project, particularly ensuring that all appropriate safety and environmental-protection measures are in place from the start.

Visible for years from so many vantage points on all sides of the valley, it may feel to some community members like the end of an era.

ARG President and Chief Operating Officer Jeannine Schoenecker said, “The familiar ARG flue-gas stack may soon be gone from the Bradford landscape, but its subtraction is actually another sign of the progress being made throughout our facility.”