Lawrence County Man Pleads Guilty to Water Pollution

ASHLAND, Ky. - A Martha, Ky., man, Josh Ferguson, 42, pleaded guilty on Tuesday before Chief U.S. District Judge David Bunning to knowingly discharging waste product into waters of the United States.

According to his plea agreement, in the fall of 2025, the Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection ("Kentucky DEP") received a tip about the discharge of "brine water," a waste product of oil production, into the Left Fork Blaine Creek in Lawrence County. On September 3, 2025, a Kentucky DEP inspector investigated the site where Ferguson owned two oil production wells. A hose connected to a metal brine tank ran through a field to the Left Fork Blaine Creek, where it was actively discharging waste product into the waterway. Downstream of the discharge, the water was orange with no signs of life, and water samples indicated extremely elevated chloride levels. When interviewed by the Kentucky DEP inspector, Ferguson admitted that he had been discharging brine water into the creek in order to save money, that he did not have a permit to do so, and that the conduct had been ongoing for two years. The Left Fork Blaine Creek is a water of the United States.

"Dumping oil-production waste into Kentucky waterways to save money is both illegal and unacceptable," said Jason Parman, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. "This case reflects our commitment to protecting public health, enforcing the Clean Water Act against those who put profit over people, and safeguarding the natural resources that our communities rely on."

"These ongoing discharges threatened the public and aquatic life downstream-putting profits over people and the environment," said Leslie Y. Carroll, Acting Special Agent in Charge of EPA's criminal enforcement program in Kentucky. "Clean water is one of Kentucky's most valuable resources, and it must be protected. Today's guilty plea demonstrates that EPA and our enforcement partners will investigate violations and hold polluters accountable to protect human health and the environment."

Jason Parman, First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; and Anthony R. Hatton, Commissioner, Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection, jointly announced the guilty plea.

The investigation was conducted by EPA-CID and Kentucky Department of Environmental Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Greenfield is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

Ferguson is scheduled to be sentenced on August 10. He faces a maximum of three years in prison and a minimum fine of not less than $5,000 per day of violation. However, any sentence will be imposed by the Court, after its consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal sentencing statutes.

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