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Proposed Brine Well Sparks Group’s Interest


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Some Athens County citizens are mobilizing their fight against a proposed fracking waste well in Athens County.

The Athens County Fracking Action Network held a meeting Wednesday to discuss a well in Rome Township that could be used to accept brine waste.     
 
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources is reviewing a permit that would convert an abandoned gas well into a brine injection well.
 
Brine is waste produced by the process of hydraulic fracturing.
 
Anti-fracking advocate Roxanne Groff says she thinks brine waste is incredibly dangerous.
 
"It must be injected into the ground. Why? Because it can kill living things. It will kill grass, plants. If it goes into a creek it will do a fish kill if there's enough of it. So, to say that it's a harmless, or not to be concerned about, it is to be concerned about," said Groff.
 
With the proposed injection well, brine waste would be stored deep below the ground.
 
The group's most immediate concern is ground water contamination, which could result in unsafe drinking water.
 
ODNR officials say the injection well would only be used for local waste disposal, some are concerned that the well could be used to dispose of waste from other states.