Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission Story Archives

At Public Hearing, ORSANCO Asked To Do More To Protect Ohio River

A multi-state commission charged with protecting the Ohio River heard testimony Monday evening in Pittsburgh that it should do more, not less to protect water quality.

In the first of three public hearings, the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, or ORSANCO, heard from more than a dozen people about proposed changes to the commission’s pollution control standards for industrial and municipal wastewater discharges into the river.

This round of public comments is the latest in a multi-year effort to update the commission’s pollution control standards for the Ohio River.

After thousands weighed in against it, ORSANCO in February scrapped an industry-backed proposal that would have eliminated its pollution control standards.

A new proposal keeps the standards, but makes adoption by ORSANCO’s eight member states optional. The proposal would require each state to provide the commission with time to comment on draft discharge permits issued along the Ohio River.

ORSANCO Director Richard Harrison said the new proposal balances the need by states for flexibility while being cognizant of the feedback received by the public largely in favor of the commission maintaining a role in pollution monitoring.

“It’s recognizing that states need flexibility to use alternative criteria,” Harrison said. “However, they need to make sure, working together collaboratively, that the discharges are not causing harm to the protected, designated uses of the river. So, it’s really making sure the end result of a discharge is not harmful to the use of the river.”

More than a dozen people testified that ORSANCO should make adoption of the standards mandatory and should increase its pollution monitoring.

“We should be discussing ways to increase the pollution controls’ efficacy, not reduce its power and provide obvious holes for states to lower their own standards to create a race to the bottom in order to attract industry,” said Joshua Eisenfeld with Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services.

Many of those who spoke expressed concern that the region’s growing petrochemical infrastructure linked to the shale gas resources in the Marcellus and Utica would negatively impact the Ohio River’s water quality.

The river, a drinking water source for 5 million people, was designated the most polluted river in the United States by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2015.

Michele Fetting, program manager for the Pittsburgh-based BREATHE Project, urged ORSANCO to not only mandate state adoption of the pollution control standards, but expand pollution monitoring to consider pollutants from the oil and gas and petrochemical industries.

“It is critical that these are included in its pollution control standards,” she said. “We will never know the full impact of new and future pollution activities if we are not testing for contaminants from these industries.”

The proposal would require each state to provide the commission time to comment on draft discharge permits issued along the Ohio River.

Some expressed concerns that by making ORSANCO’s pollution control standards discretionary, it will fall on the commission to ensure permits are demonstrating equivalency using state-by-state criteria.

Robin Blakeman, with the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, said ORSANCO needs to provide transparency and accountability.

“It is important that ORSANCO establish baseline, uniform reference discharge standards and mechanisms for holding states accountable,” she said. “Although ORSANCO’s role will not change in developing standards, all member states should be strongly advised that these standards represent the best means of maintaining the designated uses of the river.”

ORSANCO is holding two more public hearings, one in Evansville, Indiana on April 4, and the other in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 8. The commission is accepting public comment through April 15.

ORSANCO Punts on Decision to Eliminate Water Quality Standards for the Ohio River

A multi-state commission charged with protecting the Ohio River decided Thursday to postpone a decision to dramatically alter pollution controls.

The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, or ORSANCO, has been considering a proposal that would reduce its oversight of water pollution control standards along the Ohio River. The proposal, called “option 2” would eliminate the body’s water pollution control standards for industrial and municipal wastewater discharges into the river.

The eight state body was created before the passage of the Clean Water Act, with a mission to collaboratively protect the river and set limits on industrial pollution through water quality standards. ORSANCO Director Richard Harrison said the new proposal is about balancing where to put the body’s limited resources.

“This review was really about determining what is the proper role for ORSANCO going forward,” he said. “Is it in pollution control standards? Or is it in other areas such as scientific research.”

The commission argues that water pollution control standards set by member states will protect water quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will provide adequate oversight.

“The pollution control standards of the commission actually represent a third layer of standards for the Ohio River,” Harrison said. “Each member state has criteria and it’s actually the member states that implement standards through their permitting program.”

The commission was expected to vote Thursday on the proposal, but the committee tasked with making recommendations to the commission said it needed more time. Harrison said thousands of people have weighed in on the proposal.

“Really the amount of comment is the reason the committee is taking some more time to deliberate and really make sure we continue our thorough review,” he added.

Conservation groups cheered the decision. Robin Blakeman, with the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, said the proposal, if passed as is, will diminish the river’s water quality. That could affect ecosystems and jeopardize the river, which is a source of drinking water for 5 million people.

“Essentially they backed away from making a decision at this meeting and they say they’re going to engage in further dialogue with those of us in the environmental communities,” she said. “So, we’re very glad for that.”

ORSANCO is next scheduled to meet in February in Covington, KY. Harrison said the committee could provide a recommendation at any time, and at this time there are no additional public hearings on the proposal scheduled.

River Cleanups This Weekend in 6 States Along Ohio RIver

Cleanup day is coming this weekend for the Ohio River as well as the Kentucky River.

River Sweep 2016 is Saturday.

For the Ohio River, the event covers the entire river, from its origin in Pittsburgh to its end in Cairo, Illinois. The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission says that includes nearly 3,000 miles of shoreline and many tributaries.

The commission is an interstate water pollution agency for the Ohio River Valley. It organizes the River Sweep, along with environmental protection and natural resource agencies from:

Illinois
Indiana
Ohio, Kentucky
West Virginia
Pennsylvania.

The commission also sponsors the Kentucky River event, along with the city of Lexington and the Kentucky River Authority.
For more information on the Ohio River event, visit http://www.orsanco.org/sweep . For the Kentucky River event, go to http://www.riversweep2016.eventbrite.com/ .

Plan for Backup Water Supply Underway in Huntington

West Virginia American Water says it has initiated a contingency plan for a temporary backup water supply to its Huntington water treatment plant in response to increasing algae blooms on the Ohio River.

The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission notified the utility last week that algae blooms had been detected on the river upstream of Huntington.

The water company says in a news release the plan includes connecting large, temporary raw water lines from the Guyandotte River into the company’s raw water line.

The company says it will continue to monitor water quality upstream and at the Huntington treatment plant.

Company President Jeff McIntyre says the backup source may not be needed, but precautions are being taken for customers’ protection in the event that the algae blooms worsen.

Sanitation Commission, DEP: Water Quality Unchanged After Slurry Spill

State regulators say tests indicate water quality hasn’t changed following a coal slurry spill in a Kanawha River tributary.

The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission tested water samples Saturday through Tuesday at Huntington’s water intake on the Ohio River. The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection says the results indicate no water quality changes.

The DEP says its tests of Kanawha River samples last Thursday show water quality at acceptable levels for public water supplies and fisheries.

On Feb. 11, 108,000 gallons of slurry spilled into Fields Creek from Patriot Coal’s Kanawha Eagle preparation plant.

The DEP said Wednesday that slightly elevated levels of aluminum have been found within the affected area of Fields Creek. The agency attributes the elevated levels to materials used to remediate the site.