Indianapolis, IN — Governor Eric Holcomb announced Thursday that he has directed his administration to contract with third-party provider Pace Labs to immediately conduct testing of the hazardous materials including dioxin being shipped from the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment to a facility in the Putnam County town of Roachdale.
Holcomb issued the following statement:
“As I indicated in an earlier statement, it was extremely disappointing to learn through a press conference held on Monday, February 27, 2023, confirming that the EPA had chosen Indiana as a location to deposit and remediate the waste from East Palestine, Ohio. This was made after our administration directly conveyed that the materials should go to the nearest facilities, not moved from the far eastern side of Ohio to the far western side of Indiana. As you can expect, I expressed as much to the EPA administrator when we spoke on the phone Tuesday, February 28.
“All of us can agree that we should do everything within our control to provide assurance to our communities. This testing is the next necessary step. Since making this decision, we have informed the EPA and the site operator urging them to coordinate closely with this 3rd party laboratory to carry out this important testing. Sampling is scheduled to begin tomorrow, Friday, March 3.”
