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Thursday, October 06, 2005

Environment - Transfer station proposals in news

The Lafayette Cournal&Courier reports:

The ordinance committee of the area plan commission recommended Wednesday a measure that would tighten the rules governing trash transfer stations.

If adopted by the county area plan commission and the Lafayette City Council, the measure would require there be at least 2,000 feet between the six-foot-high fence required to surround such stations and any residences, schools, churches or other places of assembly in the city.

The addition of this measure could prohibit two companies with proposals already on the table from building trash transfer stations within Lafayette. * * *

Mark Palmer, an attorney for Waste Management, protested against the recommended ordinance at the meeting Wednesday. He charged that the committee members and the staff of the APC were acting out of an irrational revulsion to the idea of a transfer station, rather than according to the facts.

"I haven't seen a shred of empirical evidence to support the staff's recommendation of 2,000 feet," he said, adding that it should be left to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management to regulate trash transfer stations.

The LaPorte Argus-Herald ran a story yesterday headlined "Group says waste transfer station will affect tourism at national lakeshore." A quote:
Great Lakes Transfer LLC has filed an application to build the waste transfer station along County Line Road. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management held a public hearing last week and is expected to make a decision on the application in about two months. The deadline to submit concerns to IDEM is next week. Melessia Downham, with IDEM, said she has received hundreds of comments about the transfer facility.
Another quote:
Residents Against Trash In Our Neighborhoods Alliance — claimed at a public meeting last week that a proposed waste transfer facility at 5535 N. County Line Road would hurt tourism in LaPorte County.

“The fact that you’re going to have trash trucks passing in front of the entrance to Mount Baldy — what will eventually be the east entrance to the park — how many people want to drive behind a trash truck on their vacation? I wouldn’t,” said Ted Cudney, co-founder of RATIONAL. “People don’t want to associate with that.”

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 6, 2005 10:02 AM
Posted to Environment | Indiana Government