By: Jacob Kessler
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jacob@thevillagereporter.com
The Ohio Supreme Court has declined to review a case brought by the Williams County Board of Commissioners, effectively clearing the way for AquaBounty Technologies and the Village of Pioneer to proceed with installing two proposed pipelines tied to a long-stalled salmon farming project.
In a brief order issued June 10th, the court stated it had considered the jurisdictional memoranda filed by the commissioners and declined to accept the case for review. Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy dissented from the decision, signaling she would have taken up the matter.
The case centers on the county’s repeated denial of right-of-way permits that would have allowed Pioneer, on behalf of AquaBounty, to install a groundwater pipeline and a wastewater pipeline along County Road S.
The proposed lines would connect a rural wellfield in Madison Township to the company’s planned facility on the village’s East side at 7 Kexson Drive, with treated wastewater discharging into the nearby St. Joseph River.
The legal dispute began after the Williams County Commissioners denied three permit applications from the Village of Pioneer between 2022 and 2023.
In January 2024, the Williams County Court of Common Pleas ruled in favor of the village, finding the proposed pipelines met the definition of a public utility.
The decision was later upheld on appeal, with the court stating the commissioners’ denial was “arbitrary and capricious.”
In February 2025, the Sixth District Court of Appeals upheld the trial court’s ruling. The appellate panel confirmed the utility designation and rejected the commissioners’ arguments, reinforcing that the permits must be granted.
With the Supreme Court’s decision not to hear the case, the rulings from the lower courts remain in effect. Those decisions affirmed that the Village of Pioneer’s proposed pipelines meet the criteria of a public utility and found the commissioners’ prior denials unjustified.
As a result, AquaBounty and the village may now move forward with the project, provided they meet all other applicable regulatory and permitting requirements.
While the legal pathway has been resolved, AquaBounty still faces regulatory hurdles before beginning work.
The company must obtain environmental permits, including a wastewater discharge permit from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The Supreme Court’s decision marks the end of a lengthy court battle and shifts the focus back to permitting and environmental oversight, while opponents of the project continue to raise concerns about long-term effects on the Michindoh Aquifer and the St. Joseph River watershed.