The Kent County Commissioners were given a glowing presentation Tuesday night from a geologist representing Kent Recycling & Land Reclamation and the development partnership that hopes to build and operate a rubble-fill facility on 400 acres of the Alexander Farm in Massey. Terri Phillips of Golder Associates closed her presentation boasting state-of-the-art liner technology and well planned buffer zones that will prevent harmful runoff into ground water and the Sassafras River.
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“If this wasn’t going to benefit the county with money, we wouldn’t be here at all,” said Bryan Matthews of Galena. “I am amazed that we are going to even consider going from the county that fought off Wal-Mart to the county that builds the biggest dump on the Eastern Shore.”
A jam-packed house of opposition that spilled over into the lobby flatly rejected Phillips’ assurances of high-tech safety methods, 22 new jobs, a recycling station, local scholarships, and the County’s $700,000 annual revenue share. They overwhelmingly dismissed the monetary benefits as a small pittance when weighed against the risk of falling property values, a potential decline in tourism on the Sassafras, and irreparable harm to a way of life that residents fear is likely when truck convoys begin showing up each day with 1,200 tons of debris–mostly from northeast states.
The expected operating life of the rubble-fill facility is 30 years, and residents worry they will be stuck with the entirety of any problems once the site is sealed and the operators have left. Some residents also questioned the beautiful renderings of how the rubble-fill site will look when it is deactivated and landscaped.
Ronni Diamond of Galena said she’d heard it all before when a facility was built near her former home in Chester, Pennsylvania.
“We also had slide presentations, PowerPoints, pictures of liners, [and] we had representatives telling us how safe everything was,” Diamond said. “Five years later we as a citizens’ group had to close down that landfill because they were not in compliance. The liners failed, the leach field failed, and the ground water was corrupted. “
Diamond said felonious haulers had created ingenious ways of sneaking toxic substances into the landfill near her home.
“The haulers were taking municipal trash [and] spreading it out in vacant lots in north Philadelphia and spraying it with toxic waste–then putting it back into the [haulers’ trucks],” Diamond said.
Diamond asked members of the development partnership, sitting in the front row of the hearing, about their plans for oversight.
“I’m particularly concerned about the transport of these materials, and I don’t know whether or not the companies here have closed systems where all of the haulers will actually be employed by your companies?” Diamond asked. “If not, does that mean you will be accepting waste from other haulers?”
A representative of the developer said the facility would accept waste from outside companies.
“We will be accepting waste from third part facilities that sign contracts with us,” the representative said. “Those facilities sign contracts with us, and the truckers they use sign contracts about how they will come through the facility… and our people are trained to identify any problem waste and segregate it immediately.”
Former Congressman Wayne Gilchrest said his history in dealing with the EPA and local agencies did not give him great confidence about safety assurances at the site.
“You cannot inspect every truck… and the liner will not last forever,” Gilchrest said. “This is not nature’s design, this is not the geology of the earth that has been around for billions of years, these are new inventive engineering designs, which are the best that we can provide. But time after time I’ve asked EPA, ‘Can you guarantee a liner for a 100 years?’ and they’ve said, no.”
“In my experience over the years dealing with EPA, MDE, local governments, [and] corporations, there are always problems, there are always mistakes, honest mistakes, and mistakes they tried to hide,” Gilchrest said.
Joe Huran of Galena said that Kent County’s share of the revenue was too little when weighted against the risk of the project 100 years out.
“Because there is so much money involved [in these facilities], they also invite abuse. A lot of people can make a lot of money if they can dispose of some of these more problematic materials. So I want to encourage the county…to be mindful of the fact that we are exposing ourselves by having this [facility],” Haran said. “There is a lot of money that is going to be made if this facility goes through, billions of dollars. It’s a risk-reward ratio and I believe…we deserve to get the best possible deal. I would encourage the county to negotiate a different deal. The tipping fees should not be five percent; they should be 30 percent. In addition, we should insist that the developers put in place an insurance policy that prevents us from incurring an environmental disaster that we can’t deal with, and the developer should pay for it. It’s a reasonable request…”
Commissioner William Pickrum said that money was not the sole motivator in coming to any decision.
“I think it’s also very important that we do not adhere to the siren song of money versus the environment for the legacy we are going to leave in this county for the next hundred years or so,” Pickrum said. “So money is not everything, it’s not the only answer, period. As a matter of fact, it’s probably number two or three–or way down on the list as far as I’m concerned.”
John R. Massey of Massey said his property is located between the proposed rubble-fill and Route 299. He expressed concern about the Developer Rights and Responsibilities Agreement with Kent County, which guarantees Mr. Massey the ability to sell his farm to the developer at the 2011 appraisal–up to three years after the facility begins operation.
“I can get a better warranty than that on a new car,” Massey said. “I will have a loss of value on my farm, and I’d like to somehow be compensated for that.”
Massey affirmed his farm was not for sale.
Earlier in the hearing Commissioner Ron Fithian read a letter from Kent County Economic Director Bernadette Van Pelt on the potential windfall to Kent County for hosting the facility. In addition to the five percent revenue share to the County, Van Pelt said a positive ripple effect could be realized from haulers spending money in the county, and the $1 million dollars in annual salaries paid to 22 workers could ultimately circulate back into the local economy. Van Pelt’s letter also urged the Commissioners to strike a better deal on fees before the facility is approved.
But Sassafras River Association President John Burke said no one is considering the financial risks.
“No one has talked about what the economic risks are,” Burke said. “The [Sassafras River Association] owns approximately 300 properties. They generate around $9 million dollars worth of tax revenue on an annual basis and about $2.8 dollars from a waterfront perspective. We have 5,000 summer residents that come and stay on the Sassafras; there are 5,000 slips and five marinas; that is a huge tourism benefit for the County. If there’s a failure, and Jacob’s Creek and the Sassafras have contamination, what effect will that have on property values and the tourism that would ultimately decline?”
Burke said the initiatives underway by his organization could be negated by the facility.
“The Sassafras River Association has spent seven years doing a lot of projects,” Burke said. “We do a lot of water testing, [and] we’re in the process of building a three-cell wetlands project in Cecil County that is designed to reduce the amount of nutrients being released into the Sassafras. Ironically, this is directly across the river from the Alexander Farm. Why would we want to sell some of the best natural resources we have in the world for this risk.”
Elizabeth Barbe of Massey has owned her farm for 60 years and asked the Commissioners to extend the comment period for three weeks.
“We are deeply committed to the agricultural environment in our neighborhood,” Barbe said. “It concerns me because this is a health risk and a property value risk, and above all [this is] an environmental risk. I think people need to have more time to research this, make intelligent decisions, and ask intelligent questions.”
Barbe also questioned the clause in the Developer Rights and Responsibilities Agreement, which allows farmers near the facility to sell their farms to the developer at the 2011 appraisal.
“I know of no farmers in Massey who would ever consider selling their property to a development company,” Barbe said. “We are all wedded to the continuation of the agriculture system in our area, so we’re wondering what is really going on? What have we not been told?”
The Commissioners agreed to extend the comment period to Friday August 26 at 10 AM.
At the conclusion of the meeting, a member of the the Alexander family refused to be interviewed by the Spy.
Kent Recycling & Land Reclamation Chestertown Proposal
John says
Citizens of Kent County need to make the County Commissioners hear their voices. (410) 778-4600 [email protected]
Catty One says
If Wayne Gilchrest is not getting on this bandwagon, that’s good enough for me.
I trust his judgment.
Susanne Hayman says
Important comment period correction: The extended comment period is actually 10:00 a.m. on Friday, August 26, 2011.
Keith Thompson says
So far this is turning out to be a sign of the political process working…and working in a sane and civilized way. A company is looking to put something in that has the potential of being an economic benefit for the county and citizens have legitimate concerns about the environmental and economic impact of the project. Solid questions are being asked in a respectful fashion without yelling and screaming and a minimum of accusations being leveled at either side of the debate. The Commissioners are listening and asking their own questions and will eventually make a decision. I”m personally on the fence with this one but I’m enjoying watching the process at work here.
observer says
The unintended consequences of this particular proposal simply outweigh, by far, the potential benefits. There are quite simply too many unknowns and potential problems which, once the area is being filled, will be irreversible and impossible to adequately correct. I am unimpressed by the 100 year thoughts, too. There is simply no manner of guaranteeing this project will not become an EPA superfund site, and the local environmental consequences of that would be a far-reaching disaster. I am in favor of opting out of this one — do it elsewhere, as in far away and downstream.
Dabear says
People rise up in indignation over this project, and yet allow airplanes to regularly spray toxic chemicals on farm land adjacent to the Sassafras. The potential for and potential quantities of toxic runoff from the rubble fill site are very small compared to those actually, not potentially, generated by agricultural activities along the Sassafras. The county is in a fiscal bind and not in a position to ignore both the jobs created by this project and the direct payments as a percentage of the tipping fee. I don’t oppose the county negotiating for a larger share of the tipping fees, but to reject this project based on misinformation and emotion would be a serious error
Catty One says
Dabear, I don’t believe our former congressman engages in “misinformation and emotion” as you seem to believe the opponents of this project are mired in.
You may be an expert on this whole subject, as you cite toxic chemicals being sprayed on farmland versus
toxic runoff from the rubble fill site and so on. Point is……
I am no expert on this. I doubt there are many Spy readers here who are, or claim to be by virtue of some
advanced degrees in geomorphology or related sciences.
So I have to rely on the judgment of someone who has earned respect for his knowledge of these things –
Mr. Gilchrest.
If he is not jumping on the bandwagon and beating the drum in favor of this rubble thing,
neither am I.
And I hope my fellow taxpayers here are thinking along the same lines.
Helen Travers says
If Queen Anne’s Conservation Assn is against it, I’m FOR it, automatically.
Gren Whitman says
Dear “John,” “Catty One,” “observer,” “middle class,” and “Dabear”: To gain more credibility for your comments, when do you plan to write under your given names? Where’s your backbone?
Keith Thompson says
@Middle Class
I appreciate the sarcasm. My unwritten inference was to compare the process of the debate over the reclamation facility in Kent County to the FASTC debate last year in QAC.
John says
@ Gene, John is my given name.
rachel says
balance and compromise – and big picture…
i understand there are enviromental risks…but…farming needs cropdusters, tractors, large amouts of fuel (hence, emmissions), tractor trailers (hence, traffic)…and boating requires fuel (hence, emmissions), proper disposal of waste (honey wagons) (regulation?), and traffic for tourists to come and go…
which good outweighs which bad?
Dabear says
Gren-I post under a user name because society is full of nut cases these days.
Middle class- those renewable, cleaner burning fuels you refer to consume more energy to produce than they yield and raise the price for food in countries where the people can ill afford food already. And require a government subsidy of $1 a gallon to be anywhere close to economically viable.
Catty- Wayne Gilchrist is a good an honest man, a rarity for a former member of Congress. But I feel I am in as good a position to form an opinion on issues as Wayne and prefer to do so.
Dabear says
And as far as some of the material going into the landfill coming from other states, so does the electricity powering your computer as you read this, the gasoline that powers your cars, and the oxygen used at the K&QA hospital. If you build a fence around Kent County, it will dry up quickly.
kohimara says
The good news is we are not QA . Have to do risk reward, this is Game TEcnology. The risk are over long long time frame there may be enviromental problem that may slighty affect SR.The rewards are 12million contract with 1 million upfront.The beniffits are what will this money buy us.Could buy and retrofit marina, can put 10% to first responders, buy every student a lap top. Have great 4th july fire works. ,put geat holiday lights up and pay insurance.The real issue to me is NOT NOT water quality but air quality if methane goes in air so they have ohave what is called “adc”averagedaily cove. Also do not want trucks goig from rt. 40 to fill vila Galena so answer is trucks get route have to travel. The real problem is proper management. Again simple answer havea dvisory board headed by Wayn Gilcrest.This is about schools ,downtown economic growth and first responders.
Keith Thompson says
Middle Class writes…”Then why not just come out with it, why the ambiguity? Not everyone can connect those two dots, and you are in the business of making yourself clear.”
Am I in the business of making myself clear? I’m more of an entertainer and commentator than I am a journalist. A part of my approach is to get people to use their intelligence to connect those dots themselves. I prefer to think that people are intelligent and capable of thinking for themselves rather than to rely on other people’s talking points.
J D says
No way is this clear cut enough in the way of finances. Sure, this is going to bring in revenue and will provide jobs, however, what Kent County benefits from most…tourism..is going to take a hit. Most of all, however, the impact to the environment is no way, shape or form worth the potential monetary gain. As was stated, we are leaving this land for our children and we have a responsibility to not abuse it. Sadly, I believe you will see quite a few families vacate if this is allowed.
Keith Thompson says
If you accept that the rubblefill is not a good fit for Kent County due to the environmental and economic impact, which is a more than acceptable position to take, then what are good economic alternatives? To go one step farther…if there are good economic development alternatives, then why aren’t those alternatives already being employed? Could it be that the county has never tried or could be that they’ve tried and they haven’t worked?
Alex says
If we can’t figure out a better way to make money than plunking down a giant condom, and filling it with stuff that New York, PA, and NJ have the good sense not to dump there, what do we do? Hope we don’t drop the soap?