Patriot accuses state of trying to divert business

Patriot accuses state of trying to divert business

WARREN

The rift between Patriot Water Treatment LLC and state environmental regulators is now getting contentious.

An attorney for Patriot, the state’s lone brine-wastewater treatment plant, fired off a letter to the legal counsels of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Agency after the company said ODNR tried to divert business away from Patriot.

“Two customers of Patriot have notified my clients that ODNR employees have stated that ‘Patriot will be shut down by Ohio EPA by the end of January,’” read a letter penned by Atty. April Bott, who represents Patriot.

ODNR and OEPA have tried to shutter Patriot, which cleans low-salt brine from drilling operations, and ramp up regulations on the City of Warren.

An existing Warren water-quality permit could have expired at the end of business today, but Patriot and Warren both invoked an OEPA adjudicatory hearing process, staving off Patriot’s elimination.

OEPA cannot finalize Warren’s new, more stringent water-quality permit until the hearing process is exhausted.

Bott’s letter advised ODNR and OEPA to refrain from interfering with Patriot’s business.

“If such activity continues, Patriot and Warren will be forced to immediately invoke all available legal methods to protect their business interests from damage caused by your clients,” the letter read.

An ODNR spokesman did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.

Read the complete story in Wednesday’s Vindicator and at Vindy.com.