Environmental Protection Agency will host meeting and hearing for Fork Township well

REMUS — The Environmental Protection Agency will host a public meeting and hearing to address area residents’ concerns regarding a proposed Class II injection well in Fork Township.

The EPA event follows the submission of numerous written questions to the agency regarding the Smith 1-17 Injection Well. The well would allow San Antonio-based W.B. Osborn Oil and Gas Operations to inject used brine several thousand feet below ground in an area approximately one mile from Barryton.

The meeting will take place from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 21 and will be followed by a public hearing, where residents will be able to ask questions about the well.

“It’s important for people to come to the meeting so they’re aware of what a Class II injection well is and how it may impact their property and their health,” said Pam Gilbert.

Gilbert first learned of the well through her role as Fork Township trustee, but is working to educate the public as a private resident.

Gilbert has partnered with several other area residents to form the Mecosta County Water Protectors. One of the residents in the group is Karen Turnbull.

“We are a group of citizens concerned about the waters of Mecosta County,” Turnbull said. “This injection well prompted us to start this group, but there are other concerns in our county as well.”

The group has been meeting several times a week as well as meeting with geologists and hydrologists to learn more about injection wells in preparation for the EPA hearing, Turnbull said.

“We’re trying to know what we’re talking about when we make our statements at the hearing,” she said.

Turnbull said the group’s biggest concern is protecting the fresh water in Mecosta County. The idea that the brine Osborn plans to inject is nothing more than saltwater is flawed and dangerous, she said.

“There are other chemicals in this too, so it is toxic,” she said. “Otherwise, they would just spray it on the lawn. It’s toxic and it’s going 3,000 feet deep. When they put it under that pressure, there are all kinds of fissures.”

Another major concern for the group is a lack of interest on the part of government officials, Turnbull said. The group claims they have spoken with Rep. Phil Potvin on multiple occasions over the course of several months regarding the well and said he seems to them to have ignored the issue. The Pioneer attempted to contact Potvin at time of press and did not receive a response.

“We’re not getting any kind of cooperation from our elected officials right now,” Turnbull said.

“Nobody in leadership roles wants to know anything about this. It’s tragic and it’s frightening to me,” Gilbert said.