LUCKEY, Ohio — Mayor Cory Panning testified last September that a former quarry being proposed for public water was tested and found to be “clean and usable,” but a review of sample results and state regulations paints a more complex picture.
The 2021 report from the EPA-accredited Brookside Laboratories shows the village failed to test for more than 30 contaminants the Ohio EPA requires for new surface water sources. In addition, the quarry would need to be sampled for 12 consecutive months to confirm its suitability for public drinking water.
In an email to The Blade Monday, Mr. Panning wrote that he was aware of the state’s requirements and repeated a verbatim summary from the village’s website of a January meeting with the Ohio EPA. According to the village’s meeting summary, the Ohio EPA “expressed no concerns for the Village of Luckey to continue evaluating a surface water source.”
He added he had “no additional updates at this time.”
Ohio EPA spokesman Bryant Somerville said that state regulations and requirements were discussed in the January meeting with the village and that the meeting was “productive.”
“When a new public water system is proposed with treatment there is a detailed, mandatory process to go through,” Mr. Somerville said. “At the very least this involves an evaluation of the proposed source water. It also includes a review of the system’s general engineering plan, raw water sampling, a pilot study focused on the proposed treatment based on raw water quality, and review of detailed engineering plans.”
Mr. Somerville added that since the village has not applied to become a public water system, there is nothing for the Ohio EPA to review at this time.
The village plans to contract with water treatment company Artesian of Pioneer to construct a public water system at the former quarry. The cost has been estimated at $4.6 million, though the figure does not include the purchase of the quarry property or the water required to supply the system.
When asked whether he had any concerns with the sample results, Artesian of Pioneer CEO Ed Kidston previously testified that he saw no issues and that they showed “very good quality for a raw water source.”
Village officials attempted to purchase the quarry directly in 2021 but could not agree on terms with the sellers, prompting legal action to acquire the property through eminent domain.
Following an initial trial in September, Wood County Common Pleas Court Judge Molly Mack ruled in March that the village could proceed with acquiring the quarry. The case is currently pending appeal in the Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals.
Steven Snyder is one of the quarry’s owners and was formerly employed as a water treatment plant operator in Wood County. He previously testified that placing a water treatment plant at the quarry could be a difficult and expensive process.
“The amount of treatment and the cost to treat surface waters are exponentially greater than groundwater,” Mr. Snyder said previously. “It’s usually a much dirtier source of water to try to treat.”
Residents have repeatedly expressed concern about contaminated sites that border the quarry property. To the north lies a former beryllium plant currently being cleaned up by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, while an old township landfill borders the quarry to the east.
Mr. Kidston previously testified that he was unaware of the beryllium cleanup and that it would “definitely be better if it wasn’t there” but that there was “nothing that precludes the quarry from being viable just because that brownfield site is across the street.”
He added the former landfill was of “very limited concern.”
Notably, asbestos was one of the required contaminants not addressed by the village. The quarry was operated from approximately 1928 to 1958 by the wallboard company National Gypsum, formerly one of the country’s leading asbestos manufacturers. During this time, the quarry was used to produce finishing plaster under the Gold Bond name.
To proceed with the project, the village would need to select two additional public water options in addition to the quarry, one of which must be a connection to an existing regional water system.
The exact timeline of the water project remains unclear while the case awaits appeal. A mediation session is scheduled for Tuesday.
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