The Ohio EPA today turned to the Ohio Attorney General’s office over $2.3 million in civil penalties levied against the owners of the Rover pipeline. From member station WKSU, Jeff St.Clair has more.
Ohio EPA director Craig Butler says he had no choice but to bring-in the state attorney’s office to force a settlement with Energy Transfer Partners, and other owners of the Rover pipeline over civil penalties.
He says Rover has had logged dozens of environmental violations, from open burning, to a massive spill in a sensitive wetland and dumping drilling mud mixed with diesel fuel in a quarry where Canton draws its drinking water.
At an event Wednesday on the Cuyahoga River Butler said the fines against Rover kept snowballing.
“As time goes by it went from $400,000 to $900,000 and now we believe it’s justified to ask for a $2.3 million penalty.”
Butler says Rover’s owners have refused to pay any penalties but that clean-up of contaminated sites has gone forward.
