Beckjord wants to inject chemicals into groundwater -- will it impact drinking water?

Clermont County officials are worried about public drinking water after the Ohio EPA approved an experimental project at the former Walter C. Beckjord coal plant site to allow the injection of new chemicals into the groundwater. The Ohio EPA approved the pilot plan on May 26 — one day after Beckjord owner Commercial Liability Partners and its subsidiary New Richmond Development Corp. submitted it. “The people here in Clermont County need to understand when someone is going to come in and inject chemicals into groundwater upfield from where their drinking water is actually extracted from the ground,” said Clermont County Commissioner David Painter. The Ohio EPA did not notify county officials before approving the plan, and Painter said they only learned of it when WCPO contacted them.