A judge has dismissed a case that challenged a wastewater permit at a Putnam County landfill after state regulators granted a company’s request to end the transport of the wastewater from a Charleston chemical spill.
Kanawha County Circuit Judge Paul Zakaib dismissed the case Friday.
Zakaib had issued a temporarily ban against the state Department of Environmental Protection from allowing wastewater to be dumped at the Disposal Services landfill in Hurricane. The DEP later granted Waste Management’s request to stop the dumping.
Hurricane Mayor Scott Edwards says the issue of removing existing wastewater at the landfill still must be resolved.
The wastewater contains traces of the chemical that spilled Jan. 9 at Freedom Industries, contaminating 300,000 people’s drinking water for days.
The state Department of Environmental Protection is being asked to void a permit that allowed wastewater to be transported from the site of a Charleston chemical spill to a Putnam County landfill.
Hurricane Mayor Scott Edwards says he wasn’t told about Waste Management’s plan to dump the material mixed with sawdust at the Disposal Services landfill. The water contains traces of the crude MCHM that spilled Jan. 9, contaminating 300,000 people’s drinking water for days.
Putnam County Commission President Steve Andes says an injunction will be sought if DEP does not comply.
DEP spokeswoman Kelley Gillenwater said in an email that all regulatory requirements have been met, and there is no cause to rescind the permit.
Two senators rose to speak on the floor Wednesday about local issues they feel could have larger state impacts.
Senator Bill Laird brought to the chambers attention the possible closure of the Hawk’s Nest Golf Course in Fayette County.
Sixty-two percent of the course’s budget is absorbed by the state because of a lack of participation from the community, but Laird said the point of state parks is not to make a profit. The point is to provide recreational opportunities to the people of West Virginia while protecting its wildlife.
“Mr. President, I rage today on behalf of the people who live in a region that once contributed greatly to the economy of this great state. Mr. President, I rage today on behalf of the communities who are struggling to rebuild themselves in the wake of declining populations and shrinking economic opportunities. Mr. President I rage today on behalf of families who want their children to learn to hit a golf ball rather than a crack pipe. Mr. President and ladies and gentlemen of the Senate, thank you for allowing me to rage.”
Senator Mike Hall of Putnam County stood to address the struggles the city of Hurricane is facing in trying to build a water impoundment to use as a secondary, emergency water source.
The city currently has a pond that can provide a 25 day supply, but Hall said since 2010, they’ve been trying to build a second that could provide and additional 17 days worth of water.
The plan is being blocked because the Department of Environmental Protection says it impacts a small stream and three tenths of an acre of wetlands.
“I understand wetlands and streams need to be mitigated, but the frustration that I personally feel for the city and the citizens is that this is a water project and I can tell you that since what’s happened recently with the Elk and so forth, people came to Hurricane for water during the crisis. If you look, there aren’t any above ground tanks there. There isn’t anything to interfere with this and because our county does well and our per capita income is what it is, we apparently can’t get some relief that some of your counties might get.”
