Patriot, located on the north end of town, treats wastewater it receives from customers.
Then in May, Water Pollution Control started noticing the presence of dimethyl disulfide in the water, Haller said.
Andy Blockson, president of Patriot Water, said the key for him is that dimethyl disulfide is not regulated by the EPA, so his company is not required to test for it.
If Patriot discharged the compound, “we wouldn’t know because we don’t test for it,” he said.
Haller said testing indicated that Patriot did discharge the chemical, and Blockson agrees that is true.
But he also believes it has come from other sources because it’s a common chemical and “it’s everywhere.” Haller said one of the reasons the chemical went into Warren’s treatment system is because Patriot was accepting wastewater from a Dayton-area landfill.
When the public started complaining about smells, Water Pollution Control investigated its industrial facilities.
Throughout last week, the Ohio EPA conducted meetings in Warren that included the Mahoning Trumbull Air Pollution Control Agency, Warren Water Pollution Control, Patriot and Ohio Department of Health, Haller said.
Sometime late last week, Patriot shut down its discharge of water into the city’s sewers in the presence of Water Pollution Control officials except for wastewater from toilets and sinks.
Blockson said Patriot has shut off any discharges into the sewer system and is not receiving any liquid wastes until the chemical is completely gone from Patriot Water.