Dempsey Site Gets Ohio EPA Covenant Not to Sue
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency awarded a covenant not to sue under its Voluntary Action Program following rehabilitation of the former Joseph Dempsey Steel Co. property.
The site, 1300 S. State St., was among several properties the city acquired to support Vallourec Star’s pipe mill, which began operations in 2013. The $1.1 billion mill uses the property as a storage yard.
The land was first developed in 1906 and used for steel-related operations beginning in the 1950s. Steel operations stopped in the early 1990s, and all structures were demolished, according to Ohio EPA.
The city had conducted an initial cleanup under VAP, but the discovery of additional materials buried on the site and required more cleanup work.
A covenant not to sue protects the property owner or operator and future owners from being legally responsible to the state of Ohio for further environmental investigation and remediation relating to known releases, the EPS news release said. The protection applies only when the property is used and maintained according to the terms and conditions of the covenant.
In the 23 years since Ohio EPA issued the first covenant not to sue under the VAP program, more than 12,900 acres of blighted land have been revitalized at 599 sites across the state, EPA said.
Pictured: Aerial view of Vallourec Star site.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
