DEP retracts letter indicating Synagro will be granted waiver in Plainfield Township to fill in freshwater pond without a waterways permit

DEP Solid Waste guru Roger Bellas has retracted his opinion by letter dated August 10, 2018 that Synagro would be granted a waiver to fill in a portion of a waterway - a former quarry that is now a freshwater pond - that is within 10 feet of Synagro's proposed biosolids (shit) bakery in Plainfield Township.  He did this retraction via a letter dated February 14, 2019.  A Valentine's for Plainfield Township.  Was a red rose included?  Yellow for friendship?  Bwa ha ha - he is no friend.

DEP R. Bellas Withdrawal of... on Scribd

The retraction

Oops - I did it again

Click to see existing freshwater pond boundary 10' from proposed crap bakery

DEP Letter to Synagro/Waste... on Scribd

The August 10, 2018 Bellas Letter

Synagro has argued for over a year that the pond was engineered as a stormwater management facility,  as reviewed and approved by the DEP.  Such a waiver requires an engineered plan.  Indeed DEP granted a similar waiver after the landfill gas to energy plant was built to partially fill in the pond.  Bellas stated in his August letter that DEP had previously reviewed engineered plans and based on that would extend the waiver to cover a significant amount of fill that Synagro proposes to add, to obtain the space it needs to develop its project.  However, neither the DEP, Waste Management who owns the property and would lease land to Synagro, or Synagro has presented evidence that this engineering was done.  This was the basis for a lawsuit by Plainfield Township against the DEP, arguing that the engineering was not done.

On January 28, the court hearing the township's appeal denied a request by Waste Management and DEP to dismiss the appeal, specifically citing the fact that DEP has presented not a scintilla of evidence to support that the engineering was done.  Now Bellas retracts his letter - which ostensibly will terminate the case before the Environmental Hearing Board.  Bellas' letter has not yet been entered into the docket, and the case is still open.  Do the math - once the court ruled the appeal should move forward, the DEP folded its "the engineering was done" tent and evacuated the area.

Significance of this retraction

First off, this would seem to indicate that DEP and Roger Bellas did not previously issue the same waiver on this water body after review of the required documentation.  They probably thought "hey, it's a frickin hole in the ground - go ahead and fill it in".  This could be cured of course by Synagro doing the required testing and engineering (planners have requested for many months that Synagro do hydrogeological testing to characterize the flow of water into and out of the pond), and DEP determining after a real review that the impact on the pond is within acceptable limits.  Synagro has repeatedly stated it would not do such testing.  Bellas states in his February 14th letter that DEP will continue to review the applications from Synagro - a threat perhaps that it could reverse course and issue said waiver later in the process.  DEP is now fully on notice citizens aren't going to take this crap lying down, and if operating permits for the plant are ultimately issued they can expect an appeal on this and/or other issues.  The township, Pen Argyl, Delware Riverkeeper, and private citizens will be queuing up to file a complaint.

Quite simply, if Synagro doesn't obtain permission to partially fill in the pond, it doesn't have a driveway to get trucks to and from the proposed building.

The local significance is that without partially filling the pond, the open space required by the township (50') adjacent to water bodies is not available.  In fact, Synagro proposes to build its parking lot in the pond.  Synagro would require a zoning variance - a variance it can not possibly obtain - the property is generating millions of dollars in revenue currently, so there is no hardship on its owner.  This is why Synagro has not applied for variances, like any other applicant would have over a year ago.  Synagro has been on notice since July 2017 these variances are required!  Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent since then on this absurd proposal, without going and (trying to) getting the zoning required zoning relief.

The township maintains currently that an open space buffer can not be obtained by filling in the very body that the required 50' buffer is designed to protect.  Common sense isn't so common - evidenced by Synagro claiming that they meet the ordinance when they clearly do not.  The waiver would not negate the township's ability to enforce its ordinance, but it is easier when the applicant can't argue that it is a stormwater basin.

Next meeting is Thursday February 21 (see sidebar)

At the February 21 Synagro review meeting, you can bet that Synagro will claim it does not need this 50' open space buffer, or that it meets the requirement, or some other line of rancid bullshit spewed out by a tap dancing carnival barker.  Who will draw the straw to do the dirty work?  Synagro project manager Jim Hecht?  EarthRes engineers David Allen orThomas Pullar?  That dreadful, irritating "we aren't going to do a Q&A here" smirking attorney Elizabeth Witmer for Synagro?  When will the Synagro reality series "Slate Belt Shitstorm" be released on tv?

Synagro certainly won't be happy about this development.  No longer can they claim that DEP will consider the pond a stormwater management facility after Synagro modifies it, or even that DEP will grant them a waiver to partially fill it.

Next we will look at the other zoning variance Synagro needs to just access its site, and the bizarre argument they hope will daze planners into believing that this variance is not required.