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| 08-14-03: Minster business pleads guilty to polluting |
By LANCE MIHM
lmihm@dailystandard.com
ST. MARYS - Officials from Minster Farmers Co-Op Exchange pleaded
guilty to a charge of stream littering at a 2 p.m. arraignment Wednesday in Auglaize
County Municipal Court.
The charges resulted from an incident where rain washed ammonia from
tanks containing the substance into Koop Creek near Clover Four Road on June 5. Dave
Sheets, an Auglaize County officer with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division
of Wildlife, said the containers most likely had leaks, resulting in the spillage into the
creek.
The ammonia tanks were empty, Sheets said, but some residue escaped
into the creek. He stated that about $50 in fish were killed by the spill. He added the
exchange had been cooperative in taking care of the problem, and that spillage had not
been a habitual problem with the co-op.
Sheets was notified by a caller on June 5 that there were dead fish
floating in Koop Creek.
The charge was a third degree misdemeanor. Municipal Court Judge Gary
Herman fined the company $100. They faced up to $2,500 in fines. The penalty does not
carry a possible jail sentence for corporations. |
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