The report found it took multiple filings, and repeated emails and phone calls to get a response from Ohio regulators. It calls the process a "luck of the draw."
Range would only supply a fifth of what the plant would need. An industry analyst says the region would need to produce more ethane to support a second cracker.
An alleged bribery scheme at the highest levels of Ohio politics benefitted nuclear and coal plants. Renewable energy companies say the deck has been stacked against them for years.
Freshwater Accountability Project will collect air and water quality data near schools, and daycare and senior centers close to the site in Belmont County.
When it became clear that coal ash waste from a nearby power plant was making them sick, residents of one West Virginia town mobilized. But activists fear weakened regulations will make it harder for others to do the same.
The groups will drop their appeal of the plant's air permit in exchange for additional monitoring and disclosures. If built, the Ohio plant would be similar to Shell's cracker in Pa., shown above.