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MWCD negotiates lease with Encino
NEW PHILADELPHIA — The Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District (MWCD) has completed negotiations for an oil and gas lease for Utica Shale development for nearly 7,300 acres at Tappan Lake, the largest land lease to date on MWCD property. The MWCD Board approved the lease agreement with Encino Energy of Directors for review during their meeting on May 20. "The lease for property at Tappan Lake continues our tradition of balancing our desire to upgrade our operations and infrastructure for public enjoyment, renew and increase our focus on improving the watershed and water quality and protecting our resource by requiring enhanced environmental protections," said Gordon Maupin, president of the MWCD Board of Directors. Revenues from past leasing have allowed MWCD to invest and target nearly $200 million to upgrade our facilities through a Master Plan redesign. Phase 1 of the Master Plan is now complete, totaling approximately $130 million in new project funding. New campgrounds were constructed, and aging areas were renovated. Atwood, Charles Mill, Piedmont, Pleasant Hill, Seneca, and Tappan Lake campgrounds now offer campsites with full hook-ups and 50-amp power service with level pads. Each camp area also has new, ADA compliant restroom and shower facilities with laundry. Phase 2 of the Master Plan, totaling nearly $65 million, is now in design. The focus of this phase is on amenities, including additional playgrounds, spray grounds, sports courts, trails, and fiber optic for improved communication, to name a few. 2021 saw a record number of visitors to MWCD lakes totaling more than 5 million people enjoying the campgrounds, marinas, and lakes. Projections indicate the trend will continue for increased outdoor recreation and camping for many years to come, so the upgrades funded by leasing will serve a wide variety of users. "We are happy to continue our partnership with Encino Energy," said Craig Butler, MWCD executive director. "They are very committed to our operational and environmental principles, as well as investing in the region. This lease and funding will allow us to continue critical investments in our infrastructure, the communities throughout the watershed, as well as secure the long-term financial health of MWCD for decades to come." The five-year contract, with a three-year option to complete the drilling of this acreage, will include drilling at least 15 wells in the first five years, with additional wells being completed in the optional three years thereafter. Financial terms include the MWCD receiving $5,500 per acre paid over five years and gross royalty of 20%. The lease is a nonsurface agreement, meaning Encino will not construct well pads or other heavy infrastructure on MWCD property. It is stressed in all MWCD leases to minimize negative impacts on recreational activities and the health of our lakes and watershed. Some of the protections negotiated into the lease include the following: • An opportunity for the MWCD to review erosion control, construction, and reclamation plans •
Light and sound controls as well as visual impact analysis of drilling to reduce the temporary impact on the community
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Water testing for Tappan Lake or any freshwater sources on MWCD lands for locations within 3,000 feet of a well site
SATURDAY, MAY 28, 2022
HARRISONNEWSHERALD.COM
deals Cadiz council Scio with announces policing 100th-birthday issues proclamation BY REBECCA BRATTEN-WEISS Harrison News-Herald Staff Writer
At last Thursday's Cadiz council meeting, the members took the time to declare the following proclamation in honor of Cadiz's James A. Talbott's 100th birthday: "Whereas service to others is a hallmark of the American character and central to how we meet our challenges as a community; and Whereas James A. Talbott, a resident and citizen of the village of Cadiz, turned 100 years old on May 15, 2022, and exemplifies service to his family, community, and country; and Whereas Jim was born on his family farm located on Briar Ridge Road in Harpersville, Ohio, and upon graduation from high school, Jim entered the U. S. Army during World War II on Nov. 25, 1942, and obtained the rank of sergeant. He participated in the invasion of Normandy, the Battle of the Bulge, and spent time in England, Scotland, Germany, France, the Rhineland, the Netherlands, and other locations; and Whereas he obtained the rank of sergeant and was assigned as a quartermaster, whose duties included supplying needs to the front and transporting prisoners to the stockade; and Whereas upon his honorable discharge from the United States Army in November of 1945, Jim married Midge Dowdle, where he and his wife had two children, Karen Talbott and Kathy Talbott Barker; and Whereas Jim was employed and worked
on various farms around the area. He later worked at the Farm Bureau in Adena, Ohio and then worked for the Hannah Coal Company, later known as Consol; and Whereas Jim was known as the 'Mayor of the Heights' in Cadiz due to his gregarious and outgoing nature; and Whereas Jim enjoys spending time with his family, his two daughters, his two grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren; and Whereas James Talbott has been a long-standing member of the Cadiz community who has exemplified the traits that define the village of Cadiz, which include service to your community at large and service to your fellow citizens; and Whereas it is appropriate to recognize James Talbott on his 100th birthday to mark this occasion and to honor him for his lifelong service. Therefore, be it resolved that I, John Migliore, mayor of the village of Cadiz, do hereby recognize Mr. James A. Talbott on his 100th birthday and for his service to our community, and I wish [him] and his family health and happiness in all of their future endeavors. In witness thereof, I have hereunto set my hand and cause the seal of the village of Cadiz, Ohio to be affixed on this 19th day of May 2022."
COVID cases plateau after upward creep BY REBECCA BRATTEN-WEISS Harrison News-Herald Staff Writer
After a slow but steady increase, Harrison County’s COVID case rate growth appears to have plateaued, with 11 positive cases reported for each of the three weeks leading up to May 20. This brings the county's total reported cases to 3,274 as of May 23. Health administrator Garen Rhome stated that there is potential for the statistics to begin dropping, depending on the end-of-week CDC reports on totals. However, Rhome is also watching the CDC's Covid community level map, which shows patches of yellow and red (indicating medium and high community levels) creeping from the northeast down across New York and Pennsylvania, and now into northern Ohio. Recently, the entire state was green on the map, indicating low levels of community burden, but now 18 out of Ohio's 88 counties are yellow or red. The closest county to Harrison that is no longer in the green is Ohio County in West
MEMORIAL DAY
USPS Publication No. 236-080 One Section, 10 Pages Vol. 55, No. 3
Saturday, May 28, 2022
Virginia, which is experiencing a medium community level. Rhome stressed, again, that this new CDC map is no longer focusing simply on case rate but instead on communicating to people how Covid might be affecting their community with an eye to the burden on the health care system. He also stated that despite the creep of orange and red, there hasn't been a significant number of severe illnesses requiring hospitalization. “I'm not saying this trend won’t get worse,” Rhome added. “It is going to ebb and flow.” Additionally, he explained that while the CDC might sometimes be looking exclusively at the number of Covid cases in hospitals, local health officials can parse out and offer more precise information distinguishing people who are in the hospital with Covid versus those in hospitals the hospital for Covid. This means they can convey to people in those areas how PLATEAU See Pg.- 3
HARRISON HOSPITAL
At the Scio village council meeting on May 25, Mayor Michelle Carpenter announced that village residents who intend to bring questions or concerns to the council need to let them know in advance so that council members can be ready. "This is so we can prepare the information we need to help them," Carpenter explained. Councilmember Trish Copeland followed by making a motion that residents should call the office no later than the Monday before a meeting date and should provide their names and the issues they want addressed; the motion was passed. The reason for this concern was that at the council meeting two weeks ago, two residents attended with questions about ordinances pertaining to their broken sewer lines. It was unclear whether they or the village were responsible for the repair, but since council members had not been prepared for this question, they had to spend about half an hour looking up the relevant documents. At that prior meeting, the council went into an executive session to determine how to help the residents without violating the ordinances that seemed to put the onus of the repair work on them rather than the village. Ultimately they decided that since the residents were tenants (not owners), they needed to get in touch with the actual property owners before this could be resolved. At the May 25 meeting, council members brought up a similar case in Steubenville recently, when the city repaired a leaking water line that ran under a road and sent the homeowners the bill for it — even though the leak was on a section of the pipe that ran beyond their property. This kind of ordinance, which places responsibility for sewer and water line repair on homeowners, is not unusual in Ohio municipalities, but property owners in Scio and elsewhere might not be aware that they could be billed for a repair job done by their city or village, even if the leak or damage is past their property lines. For a while, the council has been dealing with residents who are delinquent on their water bills, so there was some debate over how best to deal with this. One option suggested initiating a tiered shut-off plan, increasing fines each time a resident is delinquent. Many of these same residents are also delinquent on income taxes, sometimes going back for years. The council determined that they would consult with their solicitor and decide how to deal with these residents. Another problem the council has grappled with repeatedly is messy, abandoned, or dangerous properties. Recently they tried to get signatures from homeowners that would permit having the nuisance structures torn down and cleaned up. But not a single property owner signed — not even those who had originally said they wanted to take advantage of the program. One of these properties is presently occupied by squatters. The sheriff was called on them recently and for inhabitants of another structure suspected of dealing drugs. Carpenter expressed her frustration that they have not been able to do anything about either situation. She said the village used to have a deputy they could call, but the officer they had worked with left the county. One council member shared that she had called the sheriff's office and asked for a deputy recently and that "they couldn't be bothered." "The sheriff's department seems to hate Scio," Carpenter said. "We need help, and we're not getting it." SCIO See Pg.- 3
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OBITUARIES Lena Mason John Godman Fred Pfouts Thomas “Tom” Richard Fife
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