The Rover Pipeline allegedly discharged several million gallons of drilling fluid into wetlands at different locations along the pipeline’s route, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The biggest spill began on April 13, when Rover Pipeline is accused of discharging several million gallons of drilling fluids into wetlands in southwestern Stark County, Ohio.
The lawsuit, filed on Friday by Ohio Attorney General Michael DeWine (R) in the Court of Common Please in Stark County, contends that Rover Pipeline’s activities “harmed pristine wetlands in Stark County that require the highest level of protection” and that “Rover failed to secure any water pollution permits designed to control these discharges.” Whether through “a series of calculated business decisions or complete indifference to Ohio’s regulators efforts, Rover had endangered the environment in more than 10 counties (including Start) and violated state laws, rules, and permits designed to protect the quality of Ohio’s water,” the lawsuit says.
In the lawsuit, the attorney general is seeking the court’s permission for the state environmental agency to assess the civil penalties.
Ohio EPA spokesperson James Lee, in an email, said Energy Transfer Partners’ statement “is not correct.” Rover Pipeline “has not fully complied” with the agency’s orders, he said.
The pipeline company, however, does not believe the Ohio attorney general’s lawsuit will affect its construction timeline.
One of the alleged violations led the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to issue a four-month stop on drilling in May under waterways and roads following the release of about 2 million gallons of drilling fluid, a clay and water mix, into wetlands in Ohio.
In April, the construction on the pipeline discharged more than two million gallons of clay-like drilling waste water in Ohio, damaging wetlands.
Energy Transfer Partners’ $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline has been operating since June 1, moving oil from North Dakota through South Dakota and Iowa to a distribution point in Illinois.
In October, a judge ruled that Energy Transfer Partners could continue transporting oil on the Dakota Access Pipeline during an ongoing environmental review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.