Landfill comments must wait
BY Kelli Young
The Canton Repository
PLAIN TWP - Health board president James Recchio Jr. saw the raised hand in the audience just before the county board planned to go behind closed doors to discuss pending litigation. He knew the man wanted to talk about the Countywide Recycling & Disposal Facility in Pike Township.
He leaned over to Assistant Stark County Prosecutor Deborah Dawson.
"I'm not in a position to entertain questions, am I?" he asked.
"No," she answered.
The subject of Countywide landfill became off-limits a day earlier when Ohio Environmental Protection Agency Director Chris Korleski recommended that the Stark County Board of Health not renew the landfill's operating license due to ongoing trouble with odors emanating from the landfill and underground fires.
Now, the eight-member health board must decide whether it agrees with Korleski's recommendation. Members are awaiting a recommendation from county Health Commissioner William Franks, who is conducting an informal review of EPA's information, staff assessments on the landfill and discussions with landfill operators. Franks' review could take up to two months to complete.
If Franks also recommends that the board deny Countywide's operating license, the board would issue a 30-day notice before holding a public hearing. That's where residents would get a chance to comment on Countywide.
If Franks recommends renewing Countywide's license, no hearing has to be held, Dawson said.
Until Franks' recommendation, Dawson said, board members have been advised not to hear comments, not to respond to phone calls or read any mail concerning Countywide.
She likened the health board to a jury, which listens to testimony during a trial before rendering a decision. Members can't hear evidence before the trial, she said.
"Therefore, it's highly inappropriate for them (health board members) to receive comments or testimony (beforehand)," she said.
But Tom O'Dell of Bolivar, who had raised his hand during the meeting, believes the board should accept some type of comment during a public meeting. O'Dell, a member of Club 3000 which opposes the landfill, said he wanted to ask about the process the board would be taking on the EPA's recommendation.
"We've been here before, and we've been able to speak," said O'Dell, who, along with other Club 3000 members, have been attending the board's monthly meetings since November. "We should at least be open to comment. They don't have to respond."
After the board returned from executive session but before it adjourned the meeting, Dawson said people have a right to attend and listen to public meetings, but they do not have a right to speak at the meeting if no public comment period appears on the agenda.
The health board's agenda typically has a period for public comments listed.
Still, the board acknowledged O'Dell at the end of the meeting, and Dawson explained that if the health board chooses to deny Countywide's license, the landfill operators could appeal to the Ohio Environmental Review Appeals Commission in Columbus.
Further appeals could lead to the state appeals court and possibly the Ohio Supreme Court.
A description of the procedures can be found at the Health Department's Web site at: www.starkhealth.org.
The Canton Repository
PLAIN TWP - Health board president James Recchio Jr. saw the raised hand in the audience just before the county board planned to go behind closed doors to discuss pending litigation. He knew the man wanted to talk about the Countywide Recycling & Disposal Facility in Pike Township.
He leaned over to Assistant Stark County Prosecutor Deborah Dawson.
"I'm not in a position to entertain questions, am I?" he asked.
"No," she answered.
The subject of Countywide landfill became off-limits a day earlier when Ohio Environmental Protection Agency Director Chris Korleski recommended that the Stark County Board of Health not renew the landfill's operating license due to ongoing trouble with odors emanating from the landfill and underground fires.
Now, the eight-member health board must decide whether it agrees with Korleski's recommendation. Members are awaiting a recommendation from county Health Commissioner William Franks, who is conducting an informal review of EPA's information, staff assessments on the landfill and discussions with landfill operators. Franks' review could take up to two months to complete.
If Franks also recommends that the board deny Countywide's operating license, the board would issue a 30-day notice before holding a public hearing. That's where residents would get a chance to comment on Countywide.
If Franks recommends renewing Countywide's license, no hearing has to be held, Dawson said.
Until Franks' recommendation, Dawson said, board members have been advised not to hear comments, not to respond to phone calls or read any mail concerning Countywide.
She likened the health board to a jury, which listens to testimony during a trial before rendering a decision. Members can't hear evidence before the trial, she said.
"Therefore, it's highly inappropriate for them (health board members) to receive comments or testimony (beforehand)," she said.
But Tom O'Dell of Bolivar, who had raised his hand during the meeting, believes the board should accept some type of comment during a public meeting. O'Dell, a member of Club 3000 which opposes the landfill, said he wanted to ask about the process the board would be taking on the EPA's recommendation.
"We've been here before, and we've been able to speak," said O'Dell, who, along with other Club 3000 members, have been attending the board's monthly meetings since November. "We should at least be open to comment. They don't have to respond."
After the board returned from executive session but before it adjourned the meeting, Dawson said people have a right to attend and listen to public meetings, but they do not have a right to speak at the meeting if no public comment period appears on the agenda.
The health board's agenda typically has a period for public comments listed.
Still, the board acknowledged O'Dell at the end of the meeting, and Dawson explained that if the health board chooses to deny Countywide's license, the landfill operators could appeal to the Ohio Environmental Review Appeals Commission in Columbus.
Further appeals could lead to the state appeals court and possibly the Ohio Supreme Court.
A description of the procedures can be found at the Health Department's Web site at: www.starkhealth.org.
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