Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday has filed criminal charges against Carlisle-based Jones Manure Hauling, LLP and its owner, Jesse Jones, over a 2021 spill near Greencastle that state investigators say tainted neighbors' drinking water and left it undrinkable years later.
The case traces back to June 30, 2021, when a hose ruptured at the Barr Farm in Franklin County while the company was offloading a large load of food processing residuals. The blowout sent the material into the environment, and in the days that followed, residents began complaining that their well water had turned foul. State regulators later concluded the release contaminated local drinking-water supplies.
According to a press release from the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, the case was referred to the office in 2023, and charges were filed this week against Jones Manure Hauling and Jones. Prosecutors have brought a felony count under the Clean Streams Act along with related misdemeanors, and the Office of Attorney General’s Environmental Crimes Section is set to handle the prosecution.
"This company's neglect after they knowingly spilled FPR cost neighbors access to clean drinking water, which remains contaminated to this day," Sunday said in the same release from the Office of Attorney General. Charging documents state the company was transporting food processing residuals, described in the paperwork as a mix of organic materials that included waste from animal slaughter, when the transfer hose ruptured while the material was being moved into a storage pit.
Neighbors Reported Rotten-Smelling Water
Neighbors told investigators that almost immediately after the spill, their tap water turned from normal to nauseating. They described the odor as smelling like "dead poultry" and "decomposing animals mixed with chicken manure," according to FOX43. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection eventually concluded that the discharge had contaminated the area's drinking-water supply, a finding reflected in the criminal complaint.
What Spilled And Why It Matters
The substance at the center of the case, food processing residuals (FPR), consists of organic byproducts that some haulers bring to farms for land application as fertilizer. When properly handled and applied, it is considered an agricultural input. In this instance, investigators say that the sheer volume of the spill, along with the fact that it was not reported when it happened, turned that potential fertilizer into a public health problem for people relying on nearby private wells.
Charges And Legal Stakes
The complaint includes a felony count of unlawful conduct under Pennsylvania's Clean Streams Law, along with related misdemeanor charges. The Environmental Crimes Section of the Attorney General’s Office is assigned to prosecute the case. The Clean Streams Law, cited at 35 P.S. §§ 691.1 et seq., provides for criminal and civil enforcement against unlawful discharges that pollute the waters of the Commonwealth, according to FindLaw.
Where The Case Stands
The Office of Attorney General notes that the referral came in 2023 and emphasizes that the newly filed charges are still only allegations. Jones Manure Hauling and Jesse Jones are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court. The Environmental Crimes Section will now move the matter through the criminal process, and future dates for hearings or arraignment will appear on the public court docket as the case proceeds.
