Sludge Watch ==> Flint Michigan- Canadian Sewage Sludge Stinking up Michigan Landfill - neighbors

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Again...here we see the failure of the Ontario Government to even remotely 
manage Ontario wastes..especially sewage sludge and papermill wastes.  As 
the Ontario Government dawdles and twiddles...trying to sneak more sludge on 
farmlands by threatening to remove the requirement for a waste permit 
(Certificate of Approval).   Farmers in Ontario just don't want the stuff. 
Especially since all those people died from drinking fecally contaminated 
water in Walkerton the concern about sludge spreading has grown.  I have 
been talking again to people who have become very ill with giardia and 
cryptosporidium that appears to be sludge related.

Ontario hasn't managed these sludge wastes. The Waste Management Policy 
Branch neither does 'waste management' nor 'waste policy' as far as I can 
tell.   In Ontario there is an lack of capacity to manage sludge.  The only 
alternatives that remain are to truck the stuff into the USA or truck it 
into Quebec and let them smell it.

Ontario needs to get its act together to solve the sludge problem.
......................................................................

Sludge a Real Stinker

THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITIONThursday, June 14, 2007

By Elizabeth Shaweshaw at flintjournal.com • 810.766.6311
QUICK TAKE
Richfield Landfill

History of the Richfield Landfill, located at 11417 E. Mt. Morris Road, 
Richfield Township, across from Holloway Reservoir:


Closed in 1991: The landfill reopened under new ownership in April 2002.


In April 2006: Residents were notified that groundwater contamination was 
detected leaking from old cells at the 300-acre site.


In July 2006: Richfield Equities held a public hearing on the company's 
proposed remedial action plan with the Department of Environmental Quality.


In May 2007: The DEQ began an investigation into odor complaints related to 
local yard waste and Canadian sewer sludge processed at the facility.

***


RICHFIELD TWP. - There's something rotten, but it's not in Denmark.

In fact, it's right here in Richfield Township in the form of imported sewer 
sludge from a malfunctioning wastewater treatment plant in Canada.

Residents say Richfield Landfill is smelling up the neighborhood this spring 
with Canadian sewer sludge.

"It's like sitting in a great big Porta-Potty," said Donna Lucas, who lives 
on E. Mt. Morris Road near the landfill entrance. "The smell gets up inside 
your nose and you can't get it out.

"How'd you like to have a cookout on the porch with that coming into your 
yard? That's what we're dealing with here."

The state Department of Environmental Quality confirmed an investigation is 
under way into possible odor violations and other compliance issues at the 
landfill.

"We are pushing towards some enforcement action, but it's a confidential 
issue right now, so we can't really talk about it," said DEQ environmental 
engineer Steve Blayer, who said his office has been receiving odor 
complaints since early May. "Whether it's Canadian or anybody's waste, it's 
a problem."

The Flint Journal was unable to reach Richfield Equities representative Fred 
Hambleton by telephone, but Blayer said the owners are aware of the problem.

In a May 25 open letter to landfill neighbors, Hambleton said the sludge 
shipments are "a temporary program that will be terminated on or before 
Saturday, June 30, 2007," but that other odor problems more difficult to 
resolve are being caused by local yard waste processed at the facility.

Page 2 of 2
Blayer said the company recently was cited for failing to comply with 
requirements to cover all waste daily.

A former gravel pit, the landfill closed in 1991 and reopened under new 
ownership in 2002 for nonhazardous household and industrial waste and 
building materials. The agreement required Richfield Equities to bring the 
facility up to modern standards and to take responsibility for cleanup 
issues predating its ownership of the 300-acre site.

Test wells last year showed unsafe levels of inorganic compounds, such as 
boron and manganese, in shallow groundwater south of the landfill.

The DEQ is working with Richfield Equities on a remedial action plan to 
clean up the leaking pollutants. Once the plan is approved, the DEQ will 
decide whether to grant the company's request to expand its operation.

"The current situation absolutely will be considered in that (request). We 
won't issue a permit to expand if they have major ongoing compliance issues 
on a continuous basis," said Blayer. "But they have a long way to go before 
they're ready to even submit the construction application."

Blayer said actions to control the stench have included spraying the waste 
with odor suppressants.

"They're taking it in, spreading it out a little, then spraying it with a 
deodorizer, and that's probably when the odors are going out," said Blayer.

Lucas said the smells "come and go like the tide."

"I was making salad yesterday, busting lettuce in the sink when it hit. I 
just wrapped it up and put it back in the fridge," she said. "Once that 
stench hits your face, you don't even feel like your food is clean anymore. 
You can't eat it."

Township Supervisor James Jacques said Hambleton has personally assured him 
the problem is being resolved.

"He told me they've been taking in five loads a day that are coming in back 
to back, and it's more than the landfill can handle to keep the odor down. 
So they're limiting them to two loads a day, and, if that doesn't work, 
they'll quit taking it," said Jacques. "This is really a DEQ issue, so we 
don't have much say in it.

"At this point, the only thing I can do is beat on the landfill owner, and 
that's what I'm doing."

Meanwhile, landfill neighbors are holding their breath until the situation 
is resolved.

"I just hope the DEQ stays on them. That's the only barrier put up to keep 
them squared off up here," said Lucas. "I understand they've got to make a 
living. But we have to live, too."

***


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