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DILLES BOTTOM --Living next to a $10 billion ethane cracker, which likely will emit various air pollutants and constant noise, is not something Jonathan Turak said the 10 Belmont County property owners he represents are interested in doing.
"It will be impossible for them to continue to live there," said Turak of those he represents who live on Dilles Bottom Road, an area just south of where Thailand's PTT Global Chemical and South Korea's Daelim Industrial Co. hope to build the giant petrochemical plant.
"We are ready and willing and able to sit down with them when they make an appropriate offer," he said. "So far, that has not happened."
Earlier this year, Ohio Gov. John Kasich joined officials representing both Asian companies to discuss the project at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. At the time, officials said they elected to exercise an option to purchase the Ohio-West Virginia Excavating property, which is to the south and west of the R.E. Burger site the developers acquired last year. In total, officials said they control about 500 acres needed to build the plant.
Belmont County Recorder's Office documents show PTT paid $13 million to acquire the R.E. Burger property from FirstEnergy Corp. last year. The transaction for the Ohio-West Virginia Excavating property is not yet fina. Developers have declined to identify the purchase price.
This week, PTT and Daelim spokesman Dan Williamson answered "yes" when directly asked if the developers had all the property needed to build the plant.
"We will soon have all the property needed to build the plant, as we are in the process of closing the purchase of the other major property by the end of this month," said Williamson of the Ohio-West Virginia parcel.
This leaves Turak's clients in a situation of uncertainty. However, Williamson said developers remain willing to talk.
"We still want to hear from landowners who want to sell their properties," said Williamson.
Turak said developers made offers to purchase the land his clients own. He said the offers, though above what PTT officials consider market value, did not account for disrupting the community.
Williamson previously said each of the offers made were at least 125 percent of the market value. However, Turak disputes the manner the developers used to determine the value.
"They only viewed the homes from the outside," said Turak. "They used a comparison to properties that were up to 15 miles away.
"Not one of these properties had a 'for sale' sign on it," he said. "How do you motivate a non-motivated seller? You have to offer them substantially more than what the property is worth."
Despite the impasse, Turak said he foresees an amicable resolution.
"None of my clients has any intention of throwing him or herself in front of a bulldozer," he said.
Meanwhile, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency officials have issued a permit to allow the plant to discharge water into the Ohio River. The agency continues reviewing the ethane cracker's air permit.
Air pollutants likely associated with such a plant include nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds, ammonia, carbon dioxide equivalents, xylene and benzene. Regular exposure to these materials can increase one's risk of cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
Ethane is one of the liquid forms of natural gas prevalent in Marcellus and Utica shale wells. Any ethane cracker will take the ethane to "crack" the liquid into ethylene. Most of this material is pumped out of the region via pipelines such as the ATEX Express, Mariner East and Mariner West, and the Utopia.
Developers and public officials said the Belmont County ethane cracker would create about 6,000 construction jobs and 500 permanent jobs.
"We are working on engineering design for the new configuration and capacity as announced in March, but we do not yet have a final investment decision," said Williamson this week regarding the general status of the project.