Demand Ohio's Regulatory Agencies Deny PTTG, Mountaineer Permits

Mike DeWine, Governor, State of Ohio; Mary Mertz, Director, Ohio Department of Natural Resources; Laurie Stevenson, Director, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency

We demand our state regulatory agencies deny all permits associated with the PTT Global Chemical ethane cracker and Mountaineer NGL storage facility until a comprehensive health impact study is completed.

Petrochemical development projects like PTTG, Mountaineer, and the 4K Industrial Park Barge Facility pose serious threats to our community:

1. PTT GLOBAL CHEMICAL AMERICA PETROCHEMICAL COMPLEX:

If constructed, the PTTGC ethane cracker plant, proposed for construction in Dilles Bottom, Ohio, would "crack" ethane molecules from fracked gas into smaller molecules that can be manufactured into plastic products. The PTTGC plant could annually emit hundreds of tons of potentially carcinogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter into the already-polluted regional atmosphere, potentially causing and exacerbating severe health problems like cancer, asthma, COPD, and neurological issues.

2. MOUNTAINEER NGL STORAGE FACILITY:

The Mountaineer NGL storage project, planned for construction in Monroe County, would develop underground caverns for the storage of natural gas liquids (“NGLs”) adjacent to the Ohio River. The storage of highly flammable, volatile NGLs threatens the area with the risk of explosions, fires, air pollution, and surface and groundwater contamination. Alarmingly, the approximately 200-acre site is less than a mile away from the groundwater wells of Clarington, OH.

3. 4K INDUSTRIAL PARK BARGE LOADING/OFF-LOADING FACILITY

4K Industrial Park has proposed the construction of a barge loading and off-loading waterfront facility in Martins Ferry. The complex would receive, process, and transport high volumes of radioactive, chemically-laden oil and gas waste along the Ohio River, threatening the water supply of five million Ohio River Valley residents.

Help us tell our public officials that we deserve better.

Now is the time to create a better, more reliable, and more sustainable economy for the Ohio Valley. We ask our state leaders to join us in creating a Better Vision. We must shift away from extractive industries to pursue a diversified regional economy with safe, abundant, and lasting employment. We envision large-scale, regenerative agricultural development and robust renewable energy infrastructure to support long-term, sustainable economic growth.

Governor DeWine, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA), and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) must prioritize the health and safety of our community over corporate interests. We need stricter regulations, not federal rollbacks of crucial, well-established protections. Ultimately, a ban on the oil and gas and petrochemical industries and an immediate shift to sustainable energy solutions and environmentally conscious industrial development is the pathway needed to ensure a protected and healthy future for our children.

Join us in holding Ohio’s regulatory agencies accountable for the imminent harm looming over the Ohio River Valley.


To: Mike DeWine, Governor, State of Ohio; Mary Mertz, Director, Ohio Department of Natural Resources; Laurie Stevenson, Director, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
From: [Your Name]

Dear Governor DeWine, Director Mertz, and Director Stevenson,

The PTTGC ethane cracker and the Mountaineer NGL storage complex pose serious threats to the health and safety of Ohio River Valley residents. We demand the permits granted for these facilities be revoked until an environmental impact and public health study is completed, and we ask you to fully withdraw your support of Ohio's oil and gas and petrochemical buildout. 

Please join us in creating a better vision for the Ohio River Valley. To help ensure a healthy and sustainable future for our children, Ohio must divest from polluting, extractive industries and embrace a diversified economy based on green infrastructure, sustainable energy, and regenerative agricultural development.