SATURDAY, MAY 15, 2021
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Falcon Pipeline draws heat, accusations of misconduct By JD LONG
jim@harrisonnewsherad.com
HARRISON COUNTY – Shell’s Falcon Pipeline, which began construction in 2019 places Harrison County in the center of more action, as if the fracking industry wasn’t enough. The pipeline begins specifically around Scio and Cadiz where it then breaks off and heads east across the northern panhandle of West Virginia and western Pennsylvania. Last year it was discovered that an official for Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Secretary Patrick McDonnell, wrote a letter addressed to the Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) that they had received “credible information that sections of Shell’s Falcon Pipeline project in western PA, developed for the transportation of ethane liquid, may have been constructed with defective corrosion coating protection.” Last Tuesday People Over Petro Coalition (POPCO) held a Zoom meeting with numerous officials
including FracTracker Alliance, landowners, Clean Air Council, Beaver County Marcellus Awareness Community, Government Accountability Project and the Center for Coalfield Justice. This coalition of concerned citizens and agencies also feel that Shell has not been completely upfront about public safety and accuses Shell of cover-ups, according to FracTracker Alliance, as provided by POPCO. The pipeline not only travels under the Ohio River but POPCO’s concern is the affect it may have on the water reserves in Tappan Lake as it serves the village of Cadiz. “The planned pipeline route passes through the corridor management zone determined for the village of Cadiz’ Tappan Lake intake. The corridor management zone is the area along each bank of the reservoir, Clear Fork and Standingstone Fork upstream of the reservoir and tributaries to these streams and the reservoir,” according to an inter-office memo from Ohio EPA. “This area is a priority for managing potential sources of contamination. Cadiz’ Tappan Lake intake is located
Cadiz debates 2-mil police levy, grant secured By JD LONG
jim@harrisonnewsherald.com
CADIZ – In the first meeting held inside the Cadiz Municipal building since last spring, Mayor John Migliore last week told council that the Transportation Alternative Program grant the village applied for had been approved in the amount of $616,402. The long hoped for repairs and needed sidewalks will now come to fruition. The money is for sidewalk repair and other improvements along Lincoln Ave. from Finney Tire to Wendy’s. The total cost of the project is $733,190 and the village’s share of that cost would be $116,000, which is to be paid from the Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds. “So that’s great news for our area,” Migliore said adding that those repairs include new curbs, sidewalks and storm sewers but the proposed start date isn’t until July of 2023. Also, Council Member Eric Miller began the meeting reminding council about a 2-mil levy the village wishes to obtain for their police department. During the police report Miller stated that Police Chief Ryan McCann provided some figures for council to review. Mayor John Migliore touched on the matter a little later in the meeting and said, “we’re going to continue to look into that.” Also, Council Member John Vermillion told council that the project near Rite-Aid on Lincoln Ave involving a storm sewer, began this week and was to last for two weeks. And regarding the Steubenville Pike project (gravel repair), he said that would cost $7,000 if done themselves and his motion for that to commence later this summer was approved. “It’s just going to be a gravel repair…” Vermillion said describing a 20-foot wide, 100 feet long and 12 inches depth of work calling it a “full depth repair.” Council Member Terry Capers asserted that this is just a temporary fix and a hot mix will be
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done later when the weather breaks for good. Capers also covered the idea of hiring a temporary seasonal employee for the park lasting from May 10 to Oct. 1. As he made the motion for the hire, discussion led to type of work, hours and cleaning procedures, which Vermillion stated the restrooms are not scheduled to open until May 27. It was decided to table the issue until the next meeting. Migliore also suggested giving its residents a forgiveness for certain water leaks that may be out of their control at times. “I would like to ask if we can pass an ordinance that would give our citizens some kind of forgiveness for this stuff,” he explained. He said some people don’t have the means to pay for the extra expense when suffering leaks, for example. He said when the water board was in existence they had that type of policy and asked council to do the same. Wastewater Superintendent Tom Carter explained that policy as paying your regular bill plus half of the leak but it was only a “one-time deal.” Treasurer Amy Ossman said that if the leak does not travel through the sewer system then the sewer charge could be forgiven, as the current ordinance reads. Council said they would look into the matter but no action was taken at the time. In other matters Carter said the sewer line at the fairgrounds had been located and a Permit To Install (PTI) was needed for the water plant project. Also, he said “unforeseen” utility issues had risen from the Lincoln Ave. project and they are working through that problem as well. Also, Migliore informed council that a $25,000 donation was secured for the new stage to be built at Sally Buffalo Park.
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approximately 6.5 river miles from the Clear Fork crossing.” Other allegations involving the 97.5 mile pipeline include “witnesses with ‘first-hand knowledge of bad corrosion
coatings, falsification of records and reports, retaliatory firings and other actions by Shell,’” according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story (Anya Litvak) dated March 17, 2021.
The DEP described the layout of the pipeline as this: “A separate segment of the pipeline would connect a
See FALCON - Pg.2
County sees slight rise in COVID cases By JD LONG
jim@harrisonnewsherald.com
CADIZ – Harrison County remains in orange alert status and one of the reasons is that for the third consecutive week the county saw double-digit or near, figures in cases. At Wednesday’s commissioners meeting Harrison County Health Administrator Garen Rhome announced 11 new cases since last week, which was up two from a week ago. This follows the approximately five-week low figures that were coming in at six or fewer cases. Total cases for Harrison County are now at 1,089 with 1,056 presumed recovered, which is up seven and active cases stand at nine, up just two from last week. Rhome said the uptick in cases is people in their twenties to forties and acknowledged “some minors” in those figures as well. “We’ve had quite a few quarantines in the large school system here in maybe the last two weeks or so,” Rhome revealed. He also said there
was one individual that was hospitalized but in general, cases are less severe. He said in the group of vaccinated people and congregated living, they are not seeing much and stated that the vaccine is seeing success. “And so the vaccine is working,” he told the board adding that they are still seeking to encourage the younger crowd, beginning with the twentysomething’s, to get their vaccine shots. Rhome said he also anticipates COVID elevating the county back into the high incidence rate of 100 cases per 100,000, which would move Harrison County deeper into the orange status and away from yellow where they were just a few weeks ago. “And again, it’s driven mostly from the middle-aged or younger case numbers that we’re seeing,” Rhome explained. Last week 200 more second doses were administered with up to possibly 20 walk-ups. This week another 50-second doses were planned to be given out. Rhome said that a group of 16 and
17 year-olds from the school were also vaccinated by the Pfizer shot as part of their partnership with Change Inc. Also, Rhome announced planned invitations for people to post on the health department’s social media website about why they decided to get a vaccine. This is for their own personal reasons and not opinions on why others should or should not receive it, he emphasized. “…Just tell me your story on one or two sentences, send me a picture and we’re going to start featuring these on our Facebook page,” Rhome said. Close to twenty public statements have been collected up till now, he said. A look at the national and world ratio on death fatalities shows the numbers are stubbornly holding steady and not falling. The world fatality ratio is at 2 percent, which is down slightly but the U.S. remains stuck at 1.7 percent. Among the local areas, Ohio has risen to 1.9 percent with Pennsylvania at 2.2 and West Virginia remaining at 1.7 percent.
New Athens addresses various village projects By JD LONG
jim@harrisonnewsherald.com NEW ATHENS – Mayor Joe Petro, concerning the paving project planned for the village, said that he had not heard from any companies solicited for the job. “Nobody’s come back to me,” he told council at Tuesday’s meeting. He did say a company from Bethesda would “write it up” for $5,000. Council agreed for Petro to get that done. For repairs at the square, Quicksall & Associates sent a letter to the village signaling the next step for that project, which was the sending out of bids. Petro said their fee would be $7,477, which he said would come from grant money. A topic other villages have been discussing made its way to New Athens and involves the American Rescue Plan (ARP). Mayor Petro said there was nothing definite on the horizon when asked but he knows other communities
are seeking funds as well. Petro noted that ARP funds would be direct funds without going through certain channels or, have strict stipulations to them as the first round of COVID funds had. Treasurer Denise Geanangel said the only difference is that it would not be “passing through the treasurer’s office.” “It’s a very simple process to get the money,” she stated adding that the government has not revealed all details yet, which seems to be the holdup for many communities. Geanangel said that the money could be used for infrastructure but paving roads would not count for that because paving does not fall under infrastructure guidelines. “Yes, it’s supposed to come straight this time because there was so much confusion the last time…” Petro said repeating that the money would be coming directly instead of the many stipulations it had the first time.
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Geanangel explained in terms of the last round that the villages who did not spend all the funds received returned it back to the auditor’s office where it was “re-distributed to the villages that used all the money.” Geanangel told council the money would not be delivered in one lump sum but over a two-year period. But the village would also have a longer time in which to spend the money where she speculated it could be a time limit of up to five years. “I think whatever they decide it’s going to be used for, then we’ll come up with something, [a] place to use it that’s going to do us the most good, is what it’s going to come down to,” Petro explained. Another topic discussed was the monument wall, which Petro said the problem anticipated was that it would all have to be taken out and put back to get it done right.
OBiTUARiES Alfred Wilson Green Scio, Ohio
Shirley Jane Wycoff Hopedale, Ohio
R. Dean Bower Cadiz, Ohio
Charles Eugene Gates Cadiz, Ohio
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