On Tuesday, plaintiff Neighbors Opposing Pit Expansion, Inc filed a suit against New Richmond Development Corp, LLC in the Southern District of Ohio Western Division. The plaintiff is claiming that the defendant has been disposing of toxic materials in the Ohio River valley.
Neighbors Opposing Pit Expansion, also known as NOPE, is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to protecting and advocating for clean and nontoxic waters in the Ohio River valley.
The complaint states that New Richmond Development Corporation had violations arise from their “handling, management, and disposal of coal combustion residuals.”
The plaintiff is claiming that the defendant had been illegally disposing of coal ash into the Ohio river valley after they had bought the Beckjord power plant that had previously been powered by coal.
According to the plaintiff the defendant had violated provisions in the Resource and Conservation and Recovery Act which prohibit such disposals. They also claim that the defendant continues to openly dispose of these toxic materials and will do so in the future
The plaintiff is also alleging that disposing of such materials into the waters of the Ohio River had adversely affected over 130,000 peoples drinking water sources.
Other claims made by the plaintiff include accusations the defendant had gone to great lengths to circumvent federal regulations by “actively misrepresenting material facts to create the false impression that the coal ash contamination is under control.”
The defendant is facing six counts, illegal waste disposal at facility that is not a sanitary landfill, illegal coal combustion residue (CCR) disposal at facility in violation of the CCR rule, illegal CCR disposal practices in violation of the CCR rule, illegal waste disposal in violation of EPA solid waste disposal in violation of EPA solid waste disposal criteria, common law nuisance arising from open dumping violations, misrepresentation involving risk of physical harm.
The plaintiff is being represented by AltmanNewman Co. LPA
