A resident who regularly collects minnows from Ramp Creek, just south of Irving-Wick Drive at Hebron Road, had complained to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency about the creek. According to information from the OEPA, the creek had an odor on the day the resident was there and the water, which flows from the west, was discolored.

The OEPA sent an investigator to the site and discovered higher levels of E. coli, bacteria found in feces. The OEPA contacted the city to request further investigation at the site, according to Erin Strouse, OEPA media-relations coordinator.

John Groff, chief of Heath's division of building and zoning, said the city is investigating the complaint and is completing tests at the site. He said the area does not receive sewage from private residences so the problem could be from animal feces. In an e-mail to the OEPA, he stated the Heath-Newark-Licking County Port Authority, Kaiser Aluminum, Heath Christian Union Church, Chapel Grove Condominiums and city facilities -- all of which are connected to the city's sewer system -- have stormwater discharge that releases into Ramp Creek.

John Geller, the city's utilities superintendent, said the city is taking samples in the city limits and north of the city limits to compare water coming into the city and how it is maintained within city limits.

"We're going to check it (water quality) inside the city limits and outside the city limits to make sure it's consistent," Geller said.

Geller said the creek normally contains some E. coli bacteria. He said the city checks to make sure levels do not increase.

Groff said that during initial testing, the city was unable to find a source of pollution to the creek. He stated in an e-mail to the OEPA that city officials have noticed that people dump brush into the creek at that point, where a dirt driveway extends to the creek from Irving-Wick Drive.

Paul Vandermeer, an OEPA environmental specialist, said a 2008 study of Ramp Creek showed the creek contained fish and macro invertebrates at OEPA attainment levels necessary for meeting the warmwater quality standards. He said that's a good thing and means that if the animals and bugs can live in the water 24 hours a day, no chronic problem could exist in the stream.

lwince@thisweeknews.com