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Gov. Eric Holcomb said Tuesday that he strongly objects to the EPA’s decision to transport hazardous materials from the East Palestine train derailment to a facility in western Indiana, a nearly 400-mile journey that likely would pass through Indianapolis.
EPA officials said Monday that some of the contaminated chemicals from the site would be shipped to an incinerator in Grafton, Ohio, and a landfill in Roachdale, Indiana, in Putnam County.
Some of those materials have already been shipped to Michigan and Texas, but EPA officials ordered Norfolk Southern on Saturday to pause the shipments to give the agency greater oversight over them.
The Putnam County facility is able to handle the materials as it primarily deals with industrial waste, said Dave Costin, emergency management director for Putnam County.
In a statement to the Indiana Capital Chronicle, representatives with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) said they did not have regulatory authority “to prevent hazardous waste disposal facilities from accepting materials for which they are permitted to handle and dispose.”
The landfill is operated by Indianapolis-based Heritage Environmental Services.
Holcomb also decried a lack of communication from federal officials, saying he first learned about the shipment on Monday through a third party.
In response, he directed Brian Rockensuess, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and a Holcomb appointee, to reach out to the agency. Holcomb said he also made a request to speak to an EPA administrator.
“The materials should go to the nearest facilities, not moved from the far eastern side of Ohio to the far western side of Indiana,” Holcomb said in a written statement Tuesday.
When asked what the governor’s office could do to halt the shipment, a Holcomb spokesperson deferred to the EPA.
EPA officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment, including what route the shipment would take.
The quickest route would be to take Interstate 70, which runs through Indianapolis.
This story may be updated. The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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Wow, somebody must have woken up Sleepy Eric from his winter hibernation!
It would be nice if the reporters for IBJ did a tiny bit more research considering that hazardous waste is not allowed to travel through the city via I70. It would be traveling around the racetrack known as 465.
Accuracy in their reporting has never been their forte. Lazily quoting the same people over and over again on a given subject seems to another one of their skill sets.
This is an Associated Press story – not IBJ. If you haven’t noticed, IBJ reposts a lot of stories from other [free] sources. It makes one wonder why the subscription rates keep going up.
Lora is correct, the signage is at 465 for thru hazardous traffic. To You 2 Brads, the byline says it is an IBJ story.
How can he object to something going to a private facility that is designed and created for these exact purposes. If he is so opposed to this waste, where was her for all the other shipments to this facility in the previous decade. Why didn’t he stop the creation of this type of facility in the first place. Sounds like it is all politics once again because he doesn’t like a decision of the current federal administration. Don’t like these materials coming to Indiana – then shut down the private business that operates it – otherwise, let private business, that has already obtained the appropriate state and federal permits operate! https://www.heritage-enviro.com/services/landfill/
Besides, the facility and state have handled far worse waste. How did he only find out Monday when the media reported Sunday?
I’m pretty sure this particular hazardous landfill was first permitted by Gov Evan Baye Can’t seem to spell his name right. Ha!
I pretty sure the state gave a license to this facility to handle hazardous waste. Why should it surprise him that once this private business got the license, they took somebody’s money to handle the waste?
Kevin P, I’m sure it was first permitted by Bayh, but that doesn’t mean he’s not aware of it or that they don’t have to have follow-up permits. Thats why I said in the last decade of all the hazardous industrial waste that has gone there. It’s not like it just appeared.
Lip service. he doesn’t really care.
A NIMBY response if I ever heard one in reaction to the right’s criticism of the way the Feds have responded. Wonder what he would say if the derailment happened in Indiana and they were shipping the waste out of state? Bet he wouldn’t lay in the road to block those shipments. Just a pathetic attempt to mollify those GOPers to his right as he’ll be running for something after November ‘24.
With all the mystery train crashes and food processing plants in record numbers of late, will the next one be the truck or train wreck over the river bridge of what is hauling the hazardous waste here?
The Biden Regime and Globalist cabal may want to get more mileage out of the Ohio crisis.
Hmmm… is Holcomb part of the Biden cabal?