State Department of Environmental Protection is investigating the operation.
By: Gwen Runkle
WEST WINDSOR Continued operation of the township’s compost facility on Alexander Road may be in jeopardy.
In response to residents’ concerns, the state Department of Environmental Protection is investigating the operation of the site and despite Township Council approval Monday night of a one-year contract extension for the facility’s operator, Carnevale Disposal Co., the owner is not willing to finalize the deal.
Gary Carnevale, owner of the disposal company, says he is not willing to sign off on the contract extension due to several new provisions the council added Monday.
The provisions allow the township Board of Health to terminate the operating agreement at its discretion. The provisions also ban the storage of tires, limit the volume of material Mr. Carnevale can take in and require he cooperate with the township administration to reduce odors emitted from the compost site.
Mr. Carnevale says he has no problem with odor abatement or limiting the amount of leaves and brush he takes in, but believes the tire and Board of Health provisions are unfair.
"I have never taken in tires," he said. "Some may be dropped off, but I give them to the township’s Public Works Department. Why should I agree not to do something I’ve never done? It’s absurd.
"As for the other provision," he continued, "the Board of Health has to have a reason, a health or safety violation, to shut me down. The provision is not clear about that and the township health officer, Robert Hary, has maintained there is no health concern here. If they try to shut me down, I will get a lawyer and fight it."
The Township Council says it added the provisions to respond to residents who have long complained about odors from the site and the possibility of groundwater contamination from compost run-off reacting with metals buried underneath the property when the site was used as the township dump.
"We want to make sure that if a serious problem is found that we can take action and halt operations," Councilwoman Jackie Alberts said Monday.
Mr. Carnevale leases the facility from the township for $400 a month and in exchange sells the compost and mulch at a profit. He says he provides a much-needed service at virtually no cost to the township and that the compost benefits all residents.
"To have another company haul out leaves and brush could cost the town more than $70,000," he said. "The council may choose to respond to a few squeaky wheels, but I think they’re making a lot of hogwash out of nothing."
Township attorney Michael Herbert says he expects to meet with Mr. Carnevale this week to work out a compromise. If Mr. Carnevale and the township cannot come to an agreement, Mr. Herbert said the facility will have to be shut down.
"We are hoping to reach an accord with Mr. Carnevale," Mr. Herbert said. "He has been very cooperative in the past. We’re trying to avoid having to close the site now without any alternative service."
Meanwhile, the DEP is looking into possible health and safety violations at the site.
Spurred by resident complaints, Amy Cradic, DEP spokeswoman, says the department came out to the compost facility May 16 and did find some areas of concern.
"We found problems with the height and space between the windrows (piles of compost), which could be contributing to the odor problem, and had some concerns with grading to allow for proper storm water drainage," she said. "Further, we plan to look into public concern about the compost’s operation on an old landfill. That type of situation is not uncommon and typically would not be a problem, but we’re following up nonetheless."
The DEP is expected to continue its investigation this week, but Ms. Cradic did not know when final results would be available or what the consequences would be if any problems were found.
She said the DEP also found the compost facility has been taking in more compost than allowed under a licensing exemption granted by the DEP two years ago.
According to the agreement, the facility should only be taking in 10,000 cubic yards of compost. Last year, the facility took in 21,000 cubic yards and in 2001 took in 16,000 cubic yards.
To cut back on overage, the township Public Works Department will no longer be bringing brush to the compost site, Mr. Herbert said. Another company, Britton, from Lawrence Township, has agreed to take brush collected by the department at no cost to the township, he added.
Residents at Monday’s meeting were pleased with the Township Council’s actions, but still would like to see the compost facility relocated to another area of town.
"Township Administrator Barbara Evans says the plan is to shut down the compost facility within two years," said Susan Conlan, a Berrien City resident. "We support this effort and hope the township finds a location suitable to all township residents."
"We will try to move the facility as soon as possible if it can be done," added Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh. "We have to look at all our options and gather the necessary scientific data to understand what’s going on."