Concerned Ohio River Residents

What Is a Cracker Plant?

Cracker plants take ethane from fracked gas and convert it into plastic pellets. The proposed PTT Global facility would sit in Dilles Bottom, OH — roughly five miles south of Shadyside and directly across the Ohio River from Moundsville, WV. Learn about the operations, scale, and risks.

Get Involved

CORR is a grassroots coalition of Ohio Valley citizens and partner organizations — including FreshWater Accountability Project, Buckeye Environmental Network, and Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition — working to stop this build-out. Join the movement and access tools for activism.

The proposed petrochemical complex in the Ohio Valley represents one of the largest industrial undertakings ever envisioned for this region. If built, the facility would process ethane extracted from fracked gas into plastic pellets on a massive scale, fundamentally altering the landscape along the Ohio River. Residents across Belmont County and neighboring West Virginia communities have raised serious questions about what such a project would mean for their air, their water, and the character of a valley they have called home for generations.

Ethane cracker plants operate through a high-temperature process that breaks down hydrocarbon molecules to produce ethylene, the foundational building block for many plastics. The proposed facility would include not only the cracking units themselves but also extensive storage infrastructure, pipeline connections, and downstream processing equipment. The sheer physical footprint of such a complex, combined with its round-the-clock operational demands, places it among the most resource-intensive industrial developments that could be situated in a rural river valley setting.

Air quality concerns stand at the forefront of public discussion surrounding the proposed plant. Cracking operations release a range of emissions, including carbon dioxide, volatile organic compounds, and fine particulate matter measuring just a few micrometers in diameter — small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs. For communities already attentive to respiratory health and environmental justice, the prospect of additional industrial emissions in a valley topography that can trap pollutants raises understandable alarm among residents and health professionals alike.

The Ohio River serves as the lifeblood of the valley, supplying drinking water, sustaining aquatic ecosystems, and supporting recreational use across multiple states. Industrial facilities of this magnitude require enormous volumes of water for cooling and processing, and the potential for both routine discharges and accidental releases has drawn scrutiny from water-quality advocates. Organizations throughout the watershed have emphasized that protecting this shared resource must remain a central consideration in any evaluation of large-scale petrochemical development along its banks.

A broad coalition of citizens, nonprofit organizations, and environmental groups has emerged to voice opposition to the proposed build-out. These groups bring together local residents, scientific expertise, and organizational capacity to monitor developments, educate the public, and engage with elected officials. The coalition model reflects a belief that decisions affecting the future of the Ohio Valley should be informed by the people who live there, not dictated solely by corporate interests headquartered far from the communities that would bear the consequences.

Fracking forms the upstream foundation of the entire proposed enterprise. The ethane feedstock that would supply the cracker plant comes from hydraulic fracturing operations across the Appalachian basin, linking the facility to a broader network of extraction, pipelines, and compression stations. This connection means the impacts of the project extend well beyond the plant fence line, touching rural landscapes, groundwater resources, and small communities throughout the region that host the infrastructure required to keep the petrochemical supply chain moving.

Economic questions hover over the proposal as well. While industrial projects often arrive with promises of construction jobs and tax revenue, the long-term economic picture for host communities can prove more complicated. The history of boom-and-bust cycles in extractive and heavy industrial regions suggests caution. Residents and analysts alike have called for honest accounting that weighs short-term employment projections against potential costs to property values, public health systems, and the natural amenities that make the Ohio Valley a place where people choose to put down roots.

The vision of a sustainable Appalachian future animates much of the organizing work underway. Rather than accepting a trajectory toward heavy petrochemical industrialization, many valley residents are advancing conversations about renewable energy, ecological restoration, and economic diversification that builds on the region's strengths without compromising its environmental inheritance. This forward-looking perspective holds that the Ohio Valley can attract investment and opportunity without becoming a sacrifice zone, and that the beauty of the river landscape deserves a legacy worthy of its long and storied history.