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Waste-to-energy plant proposed for IESI Bethlehem landfill

A Lower Saucon Council member demanded answers Wednesday night from a Michigan energy company that wants to build a renewable energy facility in the township.Aria Energy’s landfill gas-to-energy project would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 70% at the IESI Bethlehem Landfill and produce enough renewable energy to power more than 6,000 homes per year, according to the Novi, Michigan, company’s proposal outline.Aria went before council Wednesday to request a special exception to allow the construction of a 7,000-square-foot building, with alterations from plan requirements.Councilwoman Donna Louder voiced her concerns to Aria Vice President Stephen Smith about the risk of harmful byproducts resulting from the treatment process, which she said was an issue with former energy company Bethlehem Renewable Energy.BRE’s products were put into storage tanks labeled “hazardous” after a pipe broke and released dangerous waste along Applebutter Road, Louder said.“Now, if that is the same byproduct that you are going to be producing, I would like to know what the makeup of it is,” she said.Smith said Aria’s process is completely different from BRE’s system, though he did not elaborate on the exact chemicals that would be used.Council solicitor B. Lincoln Treadwell suggested asking the Zoning Hearing Board to include conditions that address council’s concerns when developing the company’s plan.“I think what we heard tonight is that whatever BRE used is a different animal than what they [Aria] would use,” Treadwell said.The board voted 4-1 to approve Council President Priscilla deLeon’s motion in favor of Aria’s proposal, with the condition that the Zoning Hearing Board would impose any conditions the Planning Committee recommended.Louder was the sole no vote.“I just didn’t get the answers I was looking for this evening,” she said. “By presenting this, you should have had those hardcore answers. I won’t support this until I feel comfortable with what you are doing.”Applebutter Road residents also raised concerns about the development of the energy facility, and expressed their frustration with the proximity of the landfill.“I am tired of stuff being put in the back of my house,” resident Susan Severn said. “They are surrounding the whole area with gas. It’s very frustrating. These people come in and say all these things, but they are just not that way.” Severn said she sees garbage every day and the township has failed to remove it properly.The IESI Bethlehem Landfill Committee logged more than seven odor complaints from residents in the first quarter of the year, according to an inspection by Christopher Taylor of Hanover Engineering. Smith said Aria’s project could reduce those emissions.Smith said Bethlehem will conduct a traffic study as the planning process moves forward, but that the facility would use two pickup trucks. It would employ two workers and a part-time manager.He said the company would reduce the planned height of the building by at least 10 feet to decrease visibility. Aria will meet with the Zoning Hearing Board on June 17 to discuss the company’s proposed site plan for the facility. Hannah McMullan is a freelance writer for The Morning Call.
Source: Morningcall

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