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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowIndiana has scrapped plans to buy land at an Ohio River site under consideration for the state’s newest shipping port, Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Thursday.
Holcomb said it would take years to clean up the site, making it not financially viable. The Ports of Indiana entered into an agreement in 2017 to reserve the option to buy up to 725 acres near Lawrenceburg, just west of the Indiana-Ohio state line. State officials conducted an evaluation of the site, including environmental conditions.
“While I’m disappointed this particular site is not feasible for this purpose, I am committed to working with the Ports of Indiana and all the dedicated business and local elected leaders in southeastern Indiana to explore other possible locations in the region,” Holcomb said in a statement.
Indiana already has three ports operating on the Ohio River and Lake Michigan. They contribute an estimated $7.8 billion each year to the state’s economy, state officials said.
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If the land is that contaminated, shouldn’t the state clean it up anyway?
Contamination clean up is the legal obligation of the responsible parties, owners and users. The company i was once with bought the former Johns Manville site in NJ, where it spent over $55MM in clean up costs for its years of asbestos production and dumping. A new owner can become a responsible person under the law. Only a fool would buy a contaminated site without some protection against a huge future clean up bill.