Ohio report shows a decrease in the release of toxic substances

COLUMBUS -- Ohio's toxic releases decreased 13.4 percent during 2001, says the Ohio EPA's annual Toxic Release Inventory report.
The 13.4 percent reduction was the largest drop in the last four reported years.
Although the reduction more than doubled the 6.22 percent reduction shown in the 2000 report, Ohio EPA officials are not content.
"That 13.4 percent is a significant reduction," said Dina Pierce, district media coordinator for the Ohio EPA. "At the same time, the goal is continuous reduction, and the ultimate goal is to make the environment cleaner."
The 2001 TRI report indicated that Trumbull County ranked No. 20 in toxic releases among Ohio's counties. The county ranked No. 14 in 2000.
Mahoning County is ranked No. 41 in the state, down from a No. 35 ranking in 2000.
Columbiana County went from No. 61 in the state in 2000 to No. 34 in the 2001 report.
While there were reductions in toxic releases to the air, releases to the water and releases to the land on-site, the only increase shown on the report was with deepwell injection.
Deepwell injection is the placement of hazardous and nonhazardous fluids into isolated formations, or wells, underground, says the Ohio EPA Web site.
From 2000 to 2001, the amount of toxins released via deepwell injection increased statwide 5.63 percent, from 30,288,747 to 31,993,954 pounds per year.