By Sean Rice
srice@dailystandard.com The managers of Celina Sanitary Landfill are discussing with Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials a possible expansion at the Depweg Road site, south of Celina.
Adam Burleson, Celina Sanitary Landfill site manager, met with Mercer County Health Department Sanitarian Chris Miller and the EPA's Mike Reiser on Thursday morning in Bowling Green.
Miller told The Daily Standard the meeting with Reiser was requested to discuss the possibility of expanding the landfill vertically and/or horizontally, because the 62-acre site is nearing capacity.
Burleson directed questions about the landfill's future to his district manager, Mark O'Brien of Allied Waste Services, who could not be reached for comment this morning.
"We don't want to run out of space out there; we want to continue to serve the public," Burleson said. Miller said Burleson questioned the time needed for permitting a vertical expansion, as opposed to a east or west expansion. He said the landfill manager was looking for ideas and opinions. He did not present any expansion plans, MIller said.
Miller told The Daily Standard a vertical expansion would be a quicker route for the landfill, but that the process could still take a year before it could be approved. He said adding 45 feet to the top of the landfill was discussed.
The tallest hill in the landfill is currently about 80 feet high, health department records show.
Workers at the landfill already have started soil testing at the site for a possible expansion, which would be followed up with many hours of hydro-geological studies before a permit is issued.
A landfill expansion would need to receive approval from the Franklin Township Zoning Commission, EPA and health board.
Miller reported that Burleson said a "worst case scenario" would be the landfill cutting down its intake to a trickle to maintain its open status. Once a landfill closes, an extensive post-closure monitoring program must begin, which lasts for 30 years.
Reopening a closed landfill is a costly and lengthy process that the EPA discourages, officials said. |
