Judge dismisses Patriot lawsuit

Staff report

warren

A Columbus judge has dismissed a $3.5 million lawsuit brought by Patriot Water Treatment Co. against the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, saying his court does not have jurisdiction to hear the matter.

Filed in November 2012 in the Court of Claims of Ohio in Columbus, Patriot claimed ODNR concealed and destroyed public documents that the company believed were crucial to showing that the agency interfered with its business over monetary concerns. ODNR is paid a fee when fracking waste is disposed of under ground.

Patriot treated brine generated from the oil and natural-gas industry and then disposed of it through the Warren Pollution Control Department.

It was granted permits to do so in 2010 from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, until ODNR banned it from doing so, shutting down its operations for three months and leading to what Patriot said was a loss in revenue.

Both parties have bickered over the matter since, and Patriot no longer is able to accept the waste.

The company could appeal the dismissal.