Townhall meeting to discuss landfills

By RON SELAK JR.
Tribune Chronicle – December 6, 2007
WARREN--Some members of a local activist group upset that it’s been almost a year since new regulations governing construction and demolition debris landfills went into effect are questioning why nothing seemingly has been done under the guidelines.

They hope to get some answers tonight. A townhall meeting regarding construction and demolition debris landfills and the law enforcement issues surrounding them will be held 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. today at the Kent State University Trumbull Campus, 4314 Mahoning Ave. N.W., Champion. The meeting will be held in lecture hall A of the classroom administration building.

The townhall meeting will be used to address law enforcement issues surrounding Ohio’s many C&DD landfills where those concerned with landfills locally can quiz Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, state and other officials about the state of the state’s regulations.

The meeting is open to the public.

Much of the discussion is expected to surround Ohio’s now old law, designed to strengthen Ohio’s regulations, but what landfill watchers say is not being implemented.

It’s there, but it’s not being policed, said Rick Hernandez of Regional Environmental Alliance for Community Health (REACH), a watchdog group formed to promote environmental education.

OEPA spokesman Mike Settles said draft rules were drawn up in August 2006, and because of the strong interest in the topic the public comment period was extended from one month to three. The agency received some 1,400 comments, which needed responses, from people on both sides of the issue, he said.

“Nobody liked the rules, be it the citizens groups, be it the landfill operators, nor the legislators,” Settle said. Plus, Settles said, the agency wants to develop fair and equitable rules for the environment and landfills. “We want to have that pass muster legally and be scientifically sound and effective to protect the environment from the impact of the C&DD’s,” Settle said.

State Sen. Capri Cafaro is behind tonight’s meeting. “The objective is to raise awareness in the community and the county about the realities of the regulations and concerns surrounding C&DD landfills, which is what we have,” said Cafaro, D-Hubbard.

She said Ohio became the perfect breeding ground for C&DD landfills because of lax regulations -- Ohio didn’t regulate the facilities at all until 1990 -- and locally because of the railroad infrastructure, which has become the preferred method of transportation of the waste.

The new law has “made some good recommendations and steps in the right direction,” Cafaro said, but to her understanding, many of it’s advocates believe it doesn’t go far enough. She says the work done has been good, but more is still needed to make it cost prohibitive for landfills to set up shop in Ohio.

Some of the new rules include background checks for owners, operators and key employees; public hearing for new permits to install; more rigorous testing of leachate -- the fluid created when water soaks through the debris; and five years of monitoring after the facility closes.

Also, it calls for a 500-foot buffers between the debris and occupied dwellings, which include homes, churches, schools, hospitals and restaurants, certain streams, wetlands, lakes, parks and other nature areas, as well as a berm at least 6 feet high to separate the facility from nearby property.
rselak@tribune-chronicle.com