Concerned residents of Saint Clair last week urged Schuylkill County Commissioners to do anything in their power to address what they call an emerging public health crisis caused by pollution from the BRADS Landfill in neighboring Blythe Township.
Saint Clair councilman Norm Diehl and Erin Portland, who sits on the Saint Clair Area school board, addressed the Commissioners last week during their evening Board Meeting.
“I come before you to implore for assistance in addressing the landfill issue that is currently plaguing our beautiful town,” Diehl said. “The noxious fumes and air pollution emanating from the site have wreaked havoc on the health and well-being of our residents. The symptoms are distressing. Raw, scratchy throats, stinging eyes, pounding headaches have become a daily affliction.”
Residents in Saint Clair have raised their voices more recently against the BRADS Landfill as the facility seeks to not only expand its lifeline through a permit renewal but also increase the tonnage of waste it accepts on a daily basis. It currently has two applications filed with the state’s Dept. of Environmental Protection to do so.
Those who oppose both applications say the landfill should be shut down due to the facility’s inability to control hydrogen sulfide smells emanating from it and due to the increasingly dangerous truck traffic through surrounding communities.
“This issue extends far beyond the confines of Saint Clair,” Diehl added. “It is encroaching upon neighboring areas such as Arnot’s Addition, Port Carbon, Schoentown, New Philadelphia, Kaska, and beyond.”
Portland said the conditions caused by BRADS as well as problems with biosolids in western Schuylkill County have created a public health crisis.
“We are facing a full-blown health crisis. This is no longer just an environmental issue. This is a direct threat to the health and safety of every single person in Schuylkill County,” she said.
During her plea to act to Commissioners last week, Portland referenced a fire at BRADS Landfill on July 3, which she says released toxic smoke and gases over the community.
“A chemical smoke plume was visible across town, dispersing hazardous pollutants, including cancer-causing substances like burning asbestos. This not only affected the air quality but also potentially contaminated nearby land and waterways, including the Wolf Creek Reservoir, our primary water source, an impact that has yet to be fully investigated by DEP or local officials,” Portland said.
Portland also noted the dangerous truck traffic coming through Saint Clair and along Burma Rd., where BRADS Landfill is located.
Recent reporting by The Canary highlighted some of the dangerous trucks that make their way to BRADS Landfill. One company was recently fined nearly $10,000 over just a few failed inspections of their vehicles at the landfill.
Those inspections revealed some shocking violations, such as drivers that weren’t properly licensed or insured, and vehicles with failed brakes, unsecured fuel tanks, and flat tires.
“Without immediate action, a tragedy is inevitable,” Portland said. “I implore you to take swift and decisive action, exploring every possible avenue to ensure the immediate protection of our communities.”
Portland also asked Commissioners to demand more of DEP, including the agency doing a thorough investigation of the July 3 fire and the recent failing of the landfill’s scrubber system that’s supposed to eliminate the hydrogen sulfide emissions.
Commissioners did respond to these pleas and noted that back in March, they sent a formal letter to DEP as a comment on the landfill’s application for a permit renewal.
That letter reads, in part:
“Both the Schuylkill County Commissioners and Schuylkill County Planning Department are in receipt of odor complaints from residents who reside in close proximity to the BRADS Landfill and have personally experienced the reported hydrogen sulfide odors. The Commissioners’ request that as the Department contemplates the renewal of BRADS’ pending application, they take into consideration these complaints.
“Further, as you review this application, the Commissioners request that you examine the adequacy of BRADS’ response to the Technical Deficiency Letter for the Major Modification permit, in which the Department cites DEP documentation of onsite and offsite odors and requests BRADS to provide additional mitigation measures.”
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Tom
September 17, 2024 at 1:31 pm
Beautiful town? Come on, councilman there’s not much beautiful about it. In most American areas, he wouldn’t come close to being on a City council. People are just stuck here because they can’t afford anywhere else, But I agree it’s a polluted mess in this area, and the truck traffic is bad as heck with the leachate trucks.