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While regulators catch them venting gas for 60 hours straight, the company pushes "chemical recycling" pilot with East Palestine chemical.

HEBRON, OH — In case you missed it, the Buckeye Environmental Network is exposing a critical public health failure in Licking County. Freepoint Eco-Systems has been slapped with its third air permit violation in a single year by the Ohio EPA.

While this company quietly admitted to illegally venting volatile chemicals 79 times, they are simultaneously seeking to expand their facility to "recycle" PVC—a process involving the same toxic chemical behind the East Palestine disaster.

THE FACTS MEDIA OUTLETS ARE MISSING:

1. A 60-Hour Chemical Release This wasn't a minor leak. Between February and June 2025, Freepoint bypassed their mandatory vapor combustors 79 separate times.

• One single event lasted 59 hours—nearly two and a half days of continuous, unpermitted venting to an open flare.

• This is the third time in 12 months they've been cited (previous violations were for excessive particulate matter).

In an election that signaled both political and generational change, longtime Hilliard resident Nadia Rasul emerged as the top vote-getter in the November 4, 2025 City Council race securing one of four open seats and becoming the first Muslim woman ever elected to Hilliard’s council.

Rasul’s victory was decisive and historic, but according to her, the reason she won was simple: “People want to feel heard.”

In an interview following the election, Rasul said that many Hilliard residents feel their voices come too late in the decision-making process. By the time citizens deliver public comments, the council has often already signaled how it intends to vote.

“That’s why people are frustrated,” she said. “They want a city government that listens before decisions are made.”

That desire for change combined with what many describe as Rasul’s deep and genuine connection to the community helped propel her to the top of the field.

There wasn’t a secret handshake. No incense or candles.

On a whim, I attended a meeting of the Columbus Democratic Socialists of America meeting on November 22. I had no idea what to expect, but I knew I was not satisfied with how Franklin County or the Columbus city government had been making decisions. To my surprise, I was surrounded by a diverse group of about a hundred other people who felt the same way.

Sitting in front of me was the legendary Joe Motil, former candidate for mayor. Sitting to my right was Jesse Vogel, former candidate for City Council District 7 (who won the voters of District 7, but still lost the election). And behind me sat Kate Curry-Da-Souza who ran as an independent in the primary for District 7 City Council.

Everyone had different, but authentic complaints.

Although the world is experiencing severe global crises, there are new efforts underway to create a more effective means of coping with them.

The crises are clear enough. They include vast slaughter in horrific wars, worldwide climate catastrophe, massive population displacement, and deepening poverty.

Moreover, these disastrous situations are likely to worsen in coming years. Modern wars are fought with increasingly devastating weapons, and preparations for nuclear war have escalated to the level of global annihilation. Similarly, time is running out for saving the planet from an environmental cataclysm, which will surely lead to heightened displacement and poverty.

California's sees record growth in battery storage

At the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference in Brazil, California Governor Newsom announced that California has reached a record level of battery storage, with 16,942 megawatts (MW) of capacity available. This is a massive buildout that's redefining grid reliability and accelerating the state's transition to 100 percent clean energy. 

The new total marks an increase of about 1,200 MW in the past six months and a 2,100 percent surge in storage capacity since 2019. California has now built one-third of the storage capacity estimated to be needed by 2045 to reach its clean energy goals. 

California has more installed battery capacity than every other jurisdiction on the planet except for China. Within the United States, California leads all states in installed storage capacity, followed by Texas which has roughly 9,000 MW of battery capacity. 

This article first appeared here.

Flock Group, Inc. has had some explaining to do this year. Billed as an intelligent platform that "unites communities, businesses, schools and law enforcement, combining their power to solve and deter crime together," the vendor of automated license plate reader (ALPR) data has, in actuality, been accused of using data points from 83,000 cameras to help a sheriff's deputy in Texas track one of the state's citizens as she fled to Illinois -- a state where the right to end a pregnancy is protected -- following a self-administered abortion in the Lone Star State.  

The Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) has a contract to give the company $90,000 per year. For some Ohioans, that's too much.  

"Given [the lack of regulation], we think it is irresponsible of our state and local governments to be purchasing, obtaining, or using these types of mass surveillance devices and technologies with no adequate statutory safeguards in place governing their use," says Gary Daniels, a legislative director at the Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

This article first appeared on the Buckeye Flame.

In January, I became the first out transgender person to serve on a city council in Ohio when I was appointed to fill an open seat. I ran to keep that seat in November and lost, but I wasn’t deflated or discouraged.  

I’m actually more energized and more committed than ever. And here’s why.

Back in 2023, I ran for the Ohio House of Representatives. I knew winning wouldn’t be easy. For starters, I was running in Ohio’s most conservative district. My opponent was a co-sponsor of the Ohio Drag Ban. But that wasn’t all. As a transgender woman running in that political climate, I had more than just a tough race ahead – I had to face the reality that people who didn’t want to see me or  anyone like me in politics would do everything in their power to stop us.

I wasn’t alone, though. Alongside me, two other transgender women ran for Ohio House seats. Together, we were determined to show up, fight and challenge the status quo. 

Buckeye Environmental Network (BEN), represented by Earthjustice, has filed a lawsuit against the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and its Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management for unlawfully approving two new Class II oil and gas waste injection wells proposed by DeepRock Disposal Solutions, LLC near Marietta.

The suit, filed in the Tenth District Court of Appeals, challenges ODNR’s approval of the Stephan #1 and American Growers #4 wells. The lawsuit argues that ODNR issued these permits using outdated, less protective rules that no longer meet current legal or scientific standards. Both wells would inject millions of gallons of toxic and radioactive oil and gas waste into underground formations less than two miles from Marietta’s public drinking water source.

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