PUBLIC INTEREST CENTER, (614) 644-2160
MEDIA CONTACT: Linda Fee Oros
CITIZEN CONTACT: Mike Settles
Ohio EPA Schedules Meeting About Lake County Switching Station Project
Potential wetlands impacts from a proposed switching station expansion in LeRoy Township will be the focus of a March 5, 2015, Ohio EPA public meeting. The information session and public hearing will begin at 6 p.m. at the LeRoy Township Senior Community Center, 13028 LeRoy Center Road, Painesville.
The meeting will be an opportunity for citizens to ask questions and submit comments concerning an application submitted by First Energy American Transmission Systems (ATS) to install new transformers and two new transmission lines north and south of the existing substation. The project is needed to address reliability issues as electrical generating plants are retired in the region.
To complete the project, ATS is requesting to permanently impact 5.35 acres of forested wetlands, 1.12 acres of non-forested wetlands and .01 acres of low quality non-forested wetlands. ATS would be required to preserve, restore or replace wetland resources to mitigate any approved impacts. Ohio EPA will also consider other alternatives that result in less or no impacts to the water’s quality.
Anyone wanting to discharge, dredge or use fill material in a way that impacts waters of the State must first obtain a water quality certification from Ohio EPA and a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Ohio EPA reviews the project to ensure it will comply with Ohio’s water quality standards.
The proposed project may result in a change from current water quality conditions, but cannot violate Ohio’s water quality standards that protect human health or the environment. Ohio EPA will consider technical, economic, social and environmental aspects of the project before deciding whether to issue or deny a water quality certification. The application and related material is available for review by calling (614) 644-2001.
Comments on the application may be offered at the hearing or submitted in writing to: EPA.DSWComments@epa.ohio.gov, or Ohio EPA, Division of Surface Water, Attn: Permits Processing Unit, P.O. Box 1049, Columbus, OH 43216-1049. The public comment period ends March 12, 2015.
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.