Great Ohio Climate March: Coming soon to trails and roads near you

The Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius may be dead, but the opportunity for those who care to do something positive to reduce Ohio’s energy carbon footprint is alive and kicking.

Anyone concerned about Ohio and the planet’s looming environmental crisis from fossil fuel fracking is invited to join Third Act Ohio to hike and walk in solidarity May 16-28 at the Great Ohio Climate March.

Climate scientists globally predict the planet will overshoot 1.5 Celsius degrees global warming within the next few years, with fossil-fueled energy on track to heat the planet to 2.7 degrees by the end of the century. 

The earth is in its third straight year of 1.5 degrees warming. 

The march will average about 5 to 12 miles per day beginning in Athens, Ohio, run through Salt Fork State Park, and end at the Statehouse in Columbus. 

The purpose of the march is to educate people about fracking, as well as present examples of cheap, emissions-free, and reliable clean renewable energy production in Ohio. 

The march will end Thursday, March 28, with a statehouse rally and visits with Ohio legislators about the importance of passing just energy laws to protect our beautiful Ohio environment and mitigate the predicted worst effects of climate change.

“Ohio may have once been at the forefront of energy generation, but it’s incredibly backward for the energy future of our state and a livable planet,” said Ditte Wolin, co-facilitator of Third Act Ohio. “Ohio should be a model for what states can do with dependable, clean and emissions-free reliable renewable energy. 

“We’re dead last among Midwest states in the production of electricity from wind. Our state’s backward energy policy has quashed enough solar projects to power the cities of Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati. We simply must implement clean energy solutions that ensure we pass on a livable planet to our children and grandchildren.”

Hikers are welcome to participate in part or all of the march — whatever they are comfortable with, said Wolin. “This is a great opportunity to see a gorgeous part of the state, learn about natural gas fracking and its negative environmental impacts compared to truly clean, renewable energy projects, and meet others with similar concerns.”

The 13-day march kicks off in Athens, Ohio, on Saturday, May 16. Hikers will travel for seven days, mostly on trails and unpaved roads, to Salt Fork State Park. 

During the Salt Fork portion of the march, hikers will witness the buildout of oil and gas infrastructure and this area’s rapid industrialization– including frack well pads, injection wells, and compressor stations. 

Salt Fork is Ohio’s largest – at 20,000 acres — and arguably most beautiful state park. As of March 2026, the Oil and Gas Land Management Commission has signed drilling leases to frack a total of 11,603 acres of Ohio state parks and wildlife areas, as well as 25 rights-of-way on Ohio Department of Transportation land and 6.9 acres at Noble Correctional Institution. 

Salt Fork area residents are experiencing the negative impacts resulting from fracking — including the clearcutting of trees, massive withdrawal of fresh water from the area’s watershed, and the industrialization of pristine natural areas with glaring lights, loud noises, and increased truck traffic. 

Hikers will have a day of rest at Salt Fork, on Saturday, May 23. Friends and family can join a midday rally with music, games, speakers, and a flotilla of kayaks. There will also be education sessions on clean, renewable energy. 

The group will then trek west for five days to Columbus, mostly on off-trail bike paths and sidewalks. On this portion of the march, hikers will see the new construction of huge, energy-guzzling data centers that compete with Ohio citizens for water and electricity

Ohio now has 199 data centers, the fourth highest of any state in the nation. Besides community concerns about water and electricity demand and diminishing water quality for everyone, these and future data centers alone could more than double central Ohio’s current electricity need and increase utility rates for all Ohio residents.

On Thursday, May 28, hikers and supporters will finish the march with a lively 3-mile walk down Broad Street, arriving at the statehouse for a rally, celebration and Legislature Day.

Participants will meet with state lawmakers to explain what they saw and learned from communities along the march; urge them to phase out fossil fuels and quickly ramp up renewable energy; and persuade lawmakers to pass legislation calling for a moratorium on fracking under Ohio public lands.

Ohio is the only state in the union that fracks its state parks. H.B. 507 was passed in 2022 by a Republican supermajority and signed into law by Gov. Mike DeWine in one of his first acts after his 2022 re-election. 

DeWine’s personally-appointed Oil and Gas Land Management Commission selected Salt Fork State Park to be fracked by gas and oil companies. 

New research by Save Ohio Parks found that fracking projects approved through January 12, 2026, would use at least 1.9 billion gallons of fresh water taken from Ohio lakes and streams, converting it into toxic, radioactive wastewater brine currently stored in Class II underground injection wells across the state. Those wells have been known to leak and threaten local drinking water supplies.

Joining Third Act Ohio as partners for the Great Ohio Climate March are almost 20 environmental organizations, including Save Ohio Parks, Sierra Club Ohio, Buckeye Environmental Network, People Over Petrol, and FracTracker Alliance.

Register to walk until April 15. For more information, or to become a sponsor, contact Mary Beth Naim, Third Act Ohio co-facilitator, at ohio@thirdact.org. 

Visit About the March – The Great Ohio Climate March for more information.