WEST DECATUR – An ordinance in Boggs Township limits the hours of waste delivery for landfills to between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays. PA Waste LLC, the company planning to apply for a permit to build a landfill in the township, wants that rule changed so waste can be delivered between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays with additional deliveries on Saturdays.
Betsy Dupuis, township solicitor, said at a meeting Monday night that the citizens should look at proposed ordinance changes as a sort of “negotiation” with PA Waste.
“One of the things the board (of supervisors) has to weigh is the potential for litigation,” said Dupuis. She said that while Boggs Township’s ordinance spells out specific times for delivery, a court could strike down that law on the basis that it is a restraint to trade.
The question Dupuis asked is this: “Is it delivery once they’re on the site?”
She said she believed the clause was vague. “It’s all about definitions,” she said.
Frank Norris, township resident, said, “Let ’em test it. Let PA Waste take it to court, and we’ll see who wins.”
Rod Beard, legal counsel for PA Waste, said if the matter were to go to court and his client were to win, Boggs Township could be responsible for paying PA Waste’s attorney fees.
In addition to the delivery hours issue, Dupuis said the ordinance does not stipulate when construction material (for building the landfill, not construction waste) may be delivered or whether operation hours are regulated. PA Waste has proposed operating (covering waste, etc.) 24 hours a day, but others have proposed a 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. operation schedule for the site. Dupuis said the restricted plan must also allow for an emergency, such as when a large amount of rain is expected.
There are still a lot of “ifs” to be considered, but Darryl Lashinsky, of the group opposing the landfill, said nothing should be done now because “they don’t have a permit.” After the Department of Environmental Protection approves the permit, he said, then negotiations can happen.
PA Waste officials are planning to file the permit by the end of the month.
Norris also questioned the supervisors as to why previous solicitor Kim Kesner was no longer representing the township.
Bill Dickson, township solicitor chairman, said Kesner had difficulty in representing both the county and the township with the pending landfill matter.
Dickson also read a letter sent to the township from the county commissioners. In that letter, the commissioners asked the supervisors not to vote in favor of allowing the proposed landfill to have extended operation hours. Dupuis said at issue is the delivery hours and not the operation hours with regard to the current ordinance.
The commissioners argued that an extended operation schedule would negatively impact economic development projects and hurt tourism promotion efforts.