Reilly Township Residents Not Happy With Prospect of a Waste Management Landfill at Blackwood

Supervisors in Reilly Township told residents and concerned citizens last week about a proposed Waste Management landfill at Blackwood.

They said at last week’s monthly supervisors meeting that they’ve met with the parties involved with the property and proposed landfill.

Chairman Bob Butensky said that 305 acres of the land would be used for accepting various types of waste:

• Municipal waste
• Construction and demolition waste
• Sewage sludge
• Medical waste (non-hazardous and non-radioactive)

Another 205 acres of the land adjacent to the proposed landfill would be used for “support” of the facility.

Waste Management is looking to acquire more than 2,000 acres of land at Blackwood, Reilly Township Solicitor William Reiley said.

He said the landfill is estimated to have a 35-year lifespan.

Proposed Landfill Faces Zoning Hurdle

This proposed landfill is far from a done deal, however, Butensky said. It could take several years before this proposed landfill is operational.

Finalized plans for it aren’t done. And there’s a big zoning hurdle for it to clear.

Currently, the land where the landfill is proposed is zoned to accept up to 500 tons of waste daily, supervisors said.

Waste Management likely will be seeking a variance from the Schuylkill County Zoning Hearing Board, but not until the Spring of next year, to accept up to 4,500 tons of waste daily.

“The majority of this will fall on the County. If they can’t get that variance, it’s not feasible for them,” Butensky said at last Thursday’s meeting. “They didn’t give us any commitment that they’re going to do this landfill yet, but they’re moving forward with their procedure.”

“Once again … a punch to the gut”

Reiley added more info about the informational session the supervisors recently attended with the proposed landfill owners.

He said it’s not normal for the supervisors to get such an invite ahead of time, as they did. Typically, Reiley said, the township is hearing about such projects when an application to the County’s zoning board has already been made or when people catch wind of a proposal like this through the grapevine.

“We don’t normally get asked to go to meetings like this but because of the importance of this and the potential impact on the township, it was deemed important enough that we would go and listen,” Reiley said.

He added that the supervisors’ attendance at this listening session does not indicate that they’re “open to this, that they’re in favor … they’re here to listen.”

Reiley said that Reilly Township “can’t stop them from applying” for a variance with the County.

And regardless of the up-front nature from Waste Management about its plans with the supervisors, he said it feels like “another punch to the gut” of Reilly Township.

“There is no amount of money …”

Residents of Reilly Township and those concerned about the growing environmental issues in western Schuylkill County had been anticipating last Thursday’s meeting for a few weeks.

About 75 people turned up for the meeting at Newtown Fire Co. and if anyone was in favor of the proposed landfill, they certainly didn’t make their opinions be known at that time.

Basically, it seems residents there have had enough of companies turning their township into a literal dumping grounds.

If this new landfill is approved and becomes operational, it’d join the Commonwealth Environmental Systems Landfill and Liberty Processing & Soils. Some feel that’s two too many companies that accept waste into Reilly Township.

A third, they told supervisors in no uncertain terms last week, is unwelcome.

One resident told supervisors, regarding any potential per-tonnage fees that the township could collect from this proposed landfill, “There is no amount of money that they can pay us as a township. There is nothing that we can do with any money that will override the impact on the quality of life of the citizens of Reilly Township.”

Supervisors sat and listened and answered questions from residents for more than an hour in response to their presentation on the proposed landfill.

And although Reiley said the supervisors did not tip their hat in any direction on whether they supported the idea of the landfill at Blackwood at their listening session, some didn’t hide their feelings at last week’s meeting.

Supervisor Lori Ruch told residents she inquired with the County about a potential ordinance that limited the amount of such facilities in one area. She said one County Commissioner – whom she didn’t mention by name – “basically hung up on me” regarding her questions.

“Just because we live in a rural area and we don’t have a lot of businesses out here, doesn’t mean we should be hammered with all kinds of stench,” Ruch said. “If you want to do something in this community, do something that’s going to benefit the community.”

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