The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Monroe won’t relent on coke plant fight

City Council to appeal dismissal of lawsuit in federal court.

Middies honor Nardiello for career contributions
9:43 p.m.
Kings Island to fill 4,000 summer jobs
9:16 p.m.
Questions raised after Romney criticized in city news release
8:44 p.m.
Monroe schools weighs options as deficit looms
8:26 p.m.
Miami OKs $73M in projects
8:20 p.m.
> More headlines

By Denise Wilson, Staff Writer Updated 2:27 AM Thursday, September 10, 2009

MONROE — The city of Monroe is not backing down in its fight to block a proposed $340 million coke plant in Middletown near its border.

Monroe City Council unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday, Sept. 8, to appeal the dismissal of the city’s Clean Air Act citizen lawsuit in federal court against Middletown Coke Company and its parent entity, SunCoke Energy.

The lawsuit was dismissed Aug. 20 in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati.

Monroe Law Director K. Philip Callahan declined comment and directed all inquires about the city’s intentions to appeal the ruling to its legal counsel, Christopher Walker, who said the city has decided to appeal the ruling because the case was dismissed on the basis of abstention.

“The U.S. District Court did not rule on the merits of our case, but rather ruled that it did not want to interfere with the pending appeal before the Environmental Review Appeals Commission. We’ve reviewed the decision and we believe it’s in error, and we think it’s appropriate to take it on appeal,” he said.

The lawsuit contended that SunCoke did not have the proper permits to construct its coke and electric cogeneration plant in Middletown, and therefore its construction and operation would violate air pollution control statutes.

Representatives from SunCoke on Wednesday did not return calls seeking comment.

City Council’s resolution states that the city also will pursue actions necessary to ensure that all federal and state laws and regulations are met regarding the proposed plant.

From July 2008 through July 2009, Monroe has paid $358,245 for legal counsel from its attorney and expert opinions regarding its SunCoke actions. Of that, $335,201 was paid to Walker’s firm, Van Kley & Walker, according to city records.

Share this article