Water quality commission wants to leave Ohio River pollution controls up to states

Mark Wilson | Evansville

EVANSVILLE, Ind. — An interstate commission tasked with overseeing the health of the Ohio River is considering eliminating its pollution control standards.

Opponents of the idea fear the move will leave a confusing mishmash of state regulations to govern pollution discharges into the river and eliminate some added protections not currently required by states.

The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) oversees an agreement between the eight states with watersheds draining into the Ohio, with commission members appointed by each state and the federal government.

The river touches on six states along its 981-mile course, including Indiana and Kentucky. It has consistently topped lists, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's, of the nation's most-polluted waterways even after decades of cleanup and more stringent regulation.

Decades before the EPA was created and Congress passed the Clean Water Act in the early 1970s, ORSANCO's member states pledged to cooperate on keeping the Ohio River clean, safe and usable.

Indiana and Kentucky both have consumption advisories for the numbers of fish that can be safely eaten from the Ohio River due to pollutants such as PCBs and mercury. About two-thirds of the river, including Indiana and Kentucky, are not safe for swimming and recreational uses, according to ORSANCO.

But in June, a majority of the commission voted to advance the idea of dropping its pollution control standards, opening the proposal to public comments as part of the commission's regular review process.

Director Richard Harrison stressed the pollution control standards have not been dropped yet: "There has been no decision made. The earliest it would be voted on is Oct. 4 when the commission meets in Lansing, West Virginia."

States are required to maintain water quality standards that meet minimum Clean Water Act standards. ORSANCO's proposal argues that states are effectively applying those criteria already and don't need ORSANCO input.

Advising committees including representatives from utilities, chemical companies and other industries have endorsed the proposal, according to public records available on ORSANCO's website.

"The only people who are supporting getting rid of these standards are the people who are dumping stuff," said Tom FitzGerald, one of two federally appointed ORSANCO commissioners.

FitzGerald, who is director of the Kentucky Resources Council, a nonprofit environmental advocacy group, voted against the proposal along with representatives from Pennsylvania and New York state.

He believes the ORSANCO pollution standards are necessary protections.

"To say the standards should be removed because all of the states are enacting them already, that is simply not the case. While it has improved significantly, these standards still have value," FitzGerald said.

He said ORSANCO's own review tallied numerous instances in which the commission's pollution control standards were more stringent than what states would otherwise allow in other bodies of water.

ORSANCO has set minimum standards for 122 pollutants, not all of which its various member states have set criteria of their own.

In addition, ORSANCO has banned so-called "mixing zones" for pollutants such as mercury. Such zones allow industries to measure the level of some pollutants after being diluted by the water instead of at the point where it enters the water. When mixing zones were banned in 2003, ORSANCO allowed industries operating from before 2003 to continue using them until 2015.

Although industries pushed to ease those restrictions in 2015, the commission instead allowed industries to petition states for mixing zones as part of the renewal process for their water pollution permit, giving the public as well as ORSANCO a chance to comment first.

"That is something states are not required to do as part of the Clean Water Act," FitzGerald said. "It is a layer of protection that absolutely would be in jeopardy if this process goes through."

Jason Flickner, director of the newly formed New Albany, Indiana, group Lower Ohio River Waterkeeper, questioned the timing of the commission's proposal. The organization has formed to champion water quality in the watersheds draining into the 312-mile stretch of the Ohio between the Kentucky and Wabash rivers.

"ORSANCO's proposal comes as rules designed to protect human health and the environment are being weakened across the country," he said.

The group is offering free transportation from Louisville to attend ORSANCO's July 26 public hearing on the proposal in Erlanger, Ky. Those interested may contact Jason Flickner by email to info@ohioriverwaterkeeper.org or by calling (502) 276-5957.

How to comment

The public can comment on ORSANCO's proposal through Aug. 10. Emailed comments can be sent to PCS@orsanco.org.

Written comments may also be mailed to: ORSANCO, 5735 Kellogg Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio, 45230. Be sure to label comments Attn: PCS Comments.

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