[Southsider2k12]

http://www.citybythelake.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=101

Friedman requests IDEM field hearing regarding Deercroft
By Laurie Wink, The News-Dispatch


LaPorte County attorney Shaw Friedman on Wednesday sent a request to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) requesting a field hearing about proposed modifications to Waste Management Inc.'s operations at its now-closed Deercroft Recycling and Disposal Facility on County Road 300 North, just south of Michigan City.

IDEM issued a public notice in December about a request by Waste Management to add four engine/generator sets to the methane gas treatment system at Deercroft.

IDEM's preliminary review of the request was positive, but before the project is approved, IDEM must respond to any requests for a public hearing on the possible impact on air quality created by the addition of the four methane units at the landfill. Methane occurs naturally as the material in the landfill decays.

No date for a public hearing has been set.

Friedman said a public meeting with IDEM and Waste Management representatives is an opportunity to get more information about the revenue being generated by the landfill's methane-to-electricity production system, as well as the environmental impact.

At the Jan. 2 LaPorte County Commissioners meeting, Tim Janatik raised concerns about the odor - what he described as a “rotten-egg smell” - from additional methane emissions at the Deercroft site. Janatik is on the steering committee of Help Enlighten LaPorte County (HELP), a grassroots activist organization concerned with the impact of federal, state and local government legislation on private property owners.

Janatik asked commissioners to request a hearing so residents of Coolspring Township can express their concerns to IDEM.

Friedman specifically requested a field hearing in LaPorte County to allow concerned citizens to attend.

Contact reporter Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com.