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Around
70 Owen County residents filled the high school auditorium at
last week’s fiscal court meeting to protest a permit filed
in order to turn the area behind the Lighthouse Church into a
landfill. But didn’t take long to resolve the matter, they’d
come to protest.
Owen County Judge-Executive Billy O’Banion began the discussion
by reading a letter denying the permit.
The letter stated that the main reason for the denial of the permit
was that the landfill would be located less than 1,000 feet from
a mapped perennial and intermittent stream, which is a violation
of Ordinance No. 99.
O’Banion read “although a final decision was not planned
for tonight’s meeting, based upon the technical information
provided, the proposed site does not meet minimum siting standards
and therefore no permit will be issued.”
The letter drew a large round of applause from those in attendance.
“As far as I’m concerned, we consider this issue resolved,”
O’Banion said. “This is not an issue I would have
have supported. There was no benefit to Owen County.”
John and Susan Pittman had purchased 25 acres of property behind
the Lighthouse Church in order to start a construction debris
landfill, which would include items such as concrete, brick and
plaster.
If the Pittman’s were at the meeting, they chose not to
come before the court to speak.
Others in attendance wanted to address the court even though the
permit was denied.
Chris Spurgeon, the president of the Owen County Chamber of Commerce,
came to the meeting armed with a petition with more than 434 signatures
against the landfill.
“I, personally, am very happy this application has been
denied,” Spurgeon told the fiscal court. “I applaud
the process that happened in order to get the decision. In the
future, we want to do whatever we can to keep this type of thing
out.”
The experience was new to most of the members of the fiscal court.
“This was a learning process for all involved,” O’Banion
said.
“We’re now better equipped and better educated on
how to handle this situation the next time it comes up.”
“This doesn’t mean it won’t happen again,”
O’Banion added. “The ordinance did its job here and
hopefully it will do its job down the road. Thankfully this ordinance
was in place.”
There was some concern about whether or not the permit could be
refiled.
Dan Logan, the solid waste coordinator, mentioned that the Pittman’s
could keep buying property until they had reached the 1,000 feet
barrier, then attempt to get another permit.
This drew some concern from those in attendance.
The idea was also raised that the Pittmans might try to put the
landfill in another spot in Owen County.
“I’m concerned they might relocate,” Mike Cobb
said. “I don’t know if this is necessarily over.”
Tommy Lawhon suggested an ordinance making it illegal to put something
such as a landfill on former church property.
“I believe such a thing is offensive to the community,”
he said.
Another resident, Beverly Mason, wanted the fiscal court to be
aware of an older ordinance prohibiting toxic waste or hazardous
materials, and wanted to make sure the fiscal court took that
ordinance into consideration when making any further landfill
decisions.
What
the
ordinance says:
CDDLs shall not be placed within:
• 1,000 feet of
an intermittent or perennial stream.
While a final decision had not been planned for last week’s
meeting, the permit was denied because it failed to meet the
requirements of the county’s ordinance.
Opponents to the landfill presented a petition with ore than
400 names objecting to the landfill’s placement. |
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