The Ginsburg Well, an injection well for frack waste located at 2345 Ladd Ridge Road in Athens County, Ohio, violates the safety and well-being of our community. This pit of smelly, disgusting frack waste remains openly accessible to wildlife and vulnerable to the ravages of weather, allowing for the possibility of ground and surface water contamination.
The Ginsburg Injection Well is owned by Carper Injection Well-Albany LLC. Review of publicly-accessible inspection reports by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) shows that this well has a history of violations, non-compliance, and being non-operational for months at a time. Mechanical failure and leaking has occurred, as well as soil contamination. From 2004-2007, it was not in operation but was not plugged as per ODNR regulations — just like today.
This well, according to ODNR reports, has been non-operational since October 2015. According to regulations, injection wells not in use for longer than 60 days must be plugged. This has not occurred and the well continues to be an open blight on our community.
During 2016 (when the well was listed as non-operational with no pump due to one needing replaced), 60 barrels of waste were added to its volume totals. According to ODNR spokesperson Eric Heiss, this was injected prior to the pump malfunction. This appears to be either a blatant lie or reveals incompetence and lack of attention to detail. Both are frightening.
According to the permit, a fresh-water monitoring well was to be placed at this site. There is no such monitoring well. This is another example of the ODNR failing to protect us and another reason that this well must be plugged immediately.
The Ginsburg Well must be a wake-up call — what other terrors lurk in our backyards, barely monitored and loosely regulated? Haven’t we seen enough environmental disasters to know that we can’t afford the luxury of complacency? Do we need another epidemic similar to C-8 in our community? Have we learned nothing from cities like Flint, Michigan, who struggle to provide clean water?
Annie Burke graduated from Ohio University in 2015 with a bachelor's degree in the science of nursing.
