PIKE COUNTY, Ohio — A Pike County silica sand mining operation has been cited for 12 environmental violations after Ohio EPA inspectors found wastewater bypassing treatment systems and discharging toward a pond adjacent to the Liberty Wildlife Area, a state-managed natural resource managed by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
The Ohio EPA’s Division of Surface Water inspected the Ohio Sands, LLC facility at 255 Wickline Road in Beaver on March 26 and discovered widespread state noncompliance issues — including violations that had already been cited in a previous notice of violation issued March 4.
Records show the mining company had been given until April 3 to respond with a compliance plan. As of the April 23 letter, Ohio EPA had received nothing.
The most significant finding involves wastewater — the contaminated water generated by the company’s sand washing operation. EPA photographs taken during the inspection show that discharge is flowing through a road culvert toward the pond on the edge of the Liberty Wildlife Area.
Ohio Sands also failed to notify the Ohio EPA within 24 hours of the bypass, a separate violation of state law.
Inspectors found significant sediment deposits in various ponds near the site. The facility was also cited for failing to remove sediment from its treatment ponds and cells at a rate sufficient to maintain the required design capacity.
Records of sampling and operational maintenance were not available on site. The stormwater pollution prevention plan was not on site. Stormwater control measures required under the facility’s permit were not being implemented — and had not been implemented since the permit’s effective date of October 1, 2025.
According to the Ohio EPA, the facility has reported violations of total suspended solids spanning from December 2024 through November 2025 — more than a year of exceedances. It also failed to submit the required Discharge Monitoring Reports for December 2025, January, February, and March 2026. The November 2025 report was due December 20 and was not submitted until January 12.
The Ohio EPA noted that several of the 12 violations are second notices — meaning the company was previously cited for the same violations and has not fixed them.
The April 23 letter gives the company 14 days to provide documentation of corrective actions taken or planned.
The adjacent Liberty Wildlife Area, managed by ODNR, provides public hunting, fishing, and wildlife habitat in Pike County. The proximity of the discharge to that state-managed area was not addressed in the EPA notice.