EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio (WKBN)- Toxic soil from East Palestine is being moved out of the city.
It was supposed to go to Michigan. Part of why this changed is because protestors in Michigan fought against having the soil brought there.
But the EPA announced those plans have changed. It’s raising concerns for East Liverpool residents.
The EPA announced Monday that toxic soil will now go to East Liverpool. Heritage Thermal Services will now handle it’s disposal. One resident is not happy about this.
Alonzo Spencer is the president of Save Our County in East Liverpool.
It’s a group for environmental advocates. Spencer has been fighting against Heritage Thermal Services and their work for years, citing the company has committed environmental violations.
Spencer questions whether Heritage Thermal Services should be handling the toxic soil.
“Is Heritage capable of handling it safely? Is this threatening the health and safety of the community, and especially with a facility that has a terrible history of being incapable of handling waste safely?” Spencer asked.
Here is some of the Heritage Thermal Services history that Alonzo is talking about. The EPA has cited 7 violations in the past 12 quarters of their Clean Air Act permit. The company also exceeded its permitted emission standard of hydrocarbons 38 times since 2018.
“They said, no, you’re not. See why can’t the people here in East Liverpool, our government, say, no, you’re not going to send this here and jeopardize our health? They should be concerned and protect the health and safety of our citizens,” Spencer said.
Spencer wants the city to fight against bringing the soil to Heritage Thermal Services. Spencer wants the soil to go elsewhere. He also expresses his concerns for areas outside of East Liverpool.
He thinks the tri state area of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia are now in jeopardy with the soil coming to East Liverpool.
