Petrochemical Toxics in the Ohio River Watershed

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Executive Summary

Petrochemical Sites in the Ohio River Basin

This map shows petrochemical sites and visualizes the mass of toxins they are permitted to discharge in three states of the Ohio River Basin (Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania).

View the map “Details” tab below in the top right corner to learn more and access the data, or click on the map to explore the dynamic version of this data. Data sources are also listed at the end of this article. In order to turn layers on and off in the map, use the Layers dropdown menu.

View Full Size Map | Updated August, 2021 | Map Tutorial

Take Aways

Shell’s ethane cracker will increase the rate of permitted discharge of toxic vinyl chloride by 68% and trichloroethylene by 75%.

The Ohio River is already considered one of the most polluted rivers in the country and there are several petrochemical facilities within the watershed that are hazardous waste sites. The expansion of the petrochemical industry in the Ohio River Basin would exacerbate these impacts for the millions of people who live there and rely on the Ohio River for drinking water.

Regulatory agencies have also weakened standards meant to improve and protect water quality at the same time that the petrochemical industry targets the Ohio River Basin for expansion. If what’s past is prologue, action must be taken now to prevent further expansion of this toxic industry.

References & Where to Learn More

Data Layers and Sources:

• Petrochemical Facilities: plants with NPDES permits within the study region. Source: EPA’s ECHO Database Watershed Statistics and Water Pollution Search, compiled by FracTracker Alliance and Ryan Talbott. Date: August, 2021.
• Water Supplier with Intake on Ohio River and tributaries. Source: ORSANCO, supplemented with Google Maps, September 2021. This data layer does not show the exact location of water intake sites. The facilities listed include a mix of water treatment plants, mailing addresses, and public office buildings associated with drinking water suppliers. The name, city, state, and zip code were provided by ORSANCO, and the point locations are estimates based off public information available online and by phone. Date: September, 2021.
• Total Permitted Toxics Per Watershed: HUC 8 Watershed boundaries, which show the sum of total annual permitted toxics (in pounds) from petrochemical facilities within that watershed. Note, this layer only includes toxics that had mass loading values listed on their NPDES permit, and excludes toxics that had concentration values. Source: USGS, FracTracker Alliance and EPA’s water Pollution Search. Date: September, 2021.
• Counties: Source: US Census Bureau.
• Ohio River Basin: Source: FracTracker Alliance
• Ohio River: Source: FracTracker Alliance
• Study Area: Source: FracTracker Alliance

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