Ohio EPA announces pending termination of permit for Perry State Forest coal mine

PICKERINGTON, Ohio &mdash The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has proposed the termination of a wastewater discharge permit for the APV mining area in Perry County that was issued on Feb. 1, 2019, a move that is a victory for motorized off-road in the Perry State Forest.

The proposal came at the request of CCU Coal and Construction, a Coshocton, Ohio, company that owns a mine in the forest.

The permit will be terminated April 1, if no further action is taken.

CCU Coal and Construction officials could not be reached for comment.

“This is a huge victory for our community and our forest,” said Lauren Ketcham, a New Lexington farmer and public relations chair for Friends of Perry State Forest. “The state heard from more than 1,000 local residents, businesses and recreationists who spoke loud and clear that they didn’t want to see our public forest handed over to a private company to be destroyed.”

The American Motorcyclist Association supports the efforts of the Friends of Perry State Forest and the Ohio Environmental Council to keep the mining company from opening a proposed strip mine that would have claimed about 500 acres of public land.

Ketcham said the revocation of the wastewater discharge permit “brings this project one step closer to termination.”

“We hope the mine’s Ohio Department of Natural Resources permit application will also be withdrawn and that the agency will move quickly to revegetate and restore the forest that was clear cut, to prevent further erosion and invasive species and to once again allow the public to enjoy this land,” she said.