THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLUMBUS - Ohio ranked first in the nation in the number of
times its major factories and cities released an unauthorized amount of
harmful chemicals and untreated sewage into waterways, according to a
report released by an environmental group Thursday.
Cities and
industrial facilities across the 50 states frequently deposited more
pollution into the nation's waterways than the 1972 federal Clean Water
Act allows, said the report from the nonprofit group Environment Ohio.
The
group looked at 2005 water pollution data from cities and industries
that were deemed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to release
a significant amount of toxins into major waterways.
Ohio had a total of 1,797 instances in which industrial facilities and cities exceeded levels allowed by permits.
"If
more people were aware that there are waterways polluted there would be
more reason to hold these polluters accountable," said Amy Gomberg,
environmental advocate for Environment Ohio.
The group received the pollution information through a Freedom of Information request to the EPA.
Ohio
ranked fifth in the country in the percentage of major facilities and
cities that exceeded permit levels at least once, with 217 out of 292,
or 74.3 percent. Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire
were ahead of Ohio in the category.
The Ohio EPA said the state
has assessed more than $22 million in penalties for water violations
from 2001 through 2006. That includes both untreated sewage and harmful
metallic chemicals such as mercury.
Many of the untreated sewage
violations are a result of municipalities that had combined storm water
and sewage drains, said Ohio EPA spokeswoman Linda Oros. When the
piping used for the two systems is combined, major rains or floods
create an overflow of storm water that pushes untreated sewage into
surface water before it gets to a sewage treatment plant.
As of
2005, 50 out of 100 municipalities had separated systems. The
municipalities that still have combined systems have put together a
timeline for separating, but it takes "tremendous capital investment,"
Oros said.
