Ohio is blessed with a rich and varied landscape - from rolling foothills, deep forests and parklands, to flat, fertile farmland. For the past 200 years, Ohio’s natural beauty and rich natural resources has played a pivotal role in our economic and cultural development.
It is estimated that:
- Since the 1800s, more than 3 billion tons of coal has been mined in Ohio.
- In 2011, Ohio’s oil and gas industry drilled an estimated 460 oil and gas wells in 42 of Ohio’s 88 counties.
- In 2011, industrial minerals such as limestone, sand, gravel, and salt, were mined in 87 of Ohio’s counties.
- In 2010, Ohio used about 8.6 billion gallons per day of water from surface and ground water sources.
- Ohio harvests 300 to 400 million board feet of timber each year.
But Ohio’s oil, natural gas, coal, timber, and water resources, have been and continue to be exploited and overused. Such exploitation can have a devastating and lasting impact on Ohio’s environmental and human health.
OEC is at the Ohio General Assembly defending against legislation that could facilitate more resource exploitation; working with state agencies, industries, and other stakeholders to find solutions that protect Ohio’s environment while also growing the state’s economy; and, when necessary, filing legal challenges to protect Ohio’s remaining precious natural heritage.
