Living in the shadow of a landfill

Residents say noxious odor travels for miles

By Austen Smith, Editor

PUBLISHED: June 8, 2006

Traci Brewer used to host picnics and family gatherings in the backyard of her Waltz Village home.

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That was before "the dump" moved in.

"I had all my kids graduation parties in the backyard," Brewer said. "But that was before 2000. Now there are some days when you can't even go outside, the smell is just gagging."

Brewer, who lives in Huron Twp., along with nearly 100 other area residents living near Carleton Farms Landfill, or the dump as it is commonly called, are taking action. They have filed a class-action lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court seeking monetary damages in excess of $25,000.

Owned by Michigan-based Republic Services, who took over the landfill in 1999, the 664-acre waste and sewage treatment operation is centrally located in Sumpter Township. Carleton Farms is one the biggest landfills in the country.

Brewer said the smell has gotten worse over the past five to six years, ever since Republic bought the operation.

She said her and her family are basically stuck.

"We can't sell the house," Brewer said. "Nobody's going to want to buy a home located near a landfill and we'd have to tell them about the smell. We've been here for 15 years, I have family here - we're basically just stuck with it."

About 10 to 20 percent of the waste product that comes into the landfill is sewage sludge, sewage treated with bacteria to a semi-solid state. It is the combination of sludge and waste intake that causes the odor which emanates for miles.

Brewer and her family live about mile and a half away from the landfill.

Detroit-based attorneys Macuga & Liddle, P.C. , are representing the residents in the suit. One of the primary staples in the complaint is the amount of Canadian waste the landfill intakes. Noxious odors emanating from the waste have caused adverse effects on the quality of life for surrounding residents according to a May 30 press release.

Attorney David Dubin said they became aware of the problem through the media and then were referred to a group of residents through another case. "We learned there were a lot of people being impacted by this problem," Dubin said. "We learned there were a large number of complaints from residents. We went out and met with them and they were very upset. There was an overwhelming response."

As of press time, Republic officials had not been served with the suit.

Press Director for Republic, Will Flower, said they will have to review the lawsuit before they comment.

Flower said they have enjoyed a good relationship with Sumpter Township officials over the years.

"We typically do not get actions filed against us," Flower said. "We have an excellent environmental record. Sumpter Township has always been very supportive and continues to this day. They understand there is a need for this facility."

Sumpter Township Supervisor Johnny Vawters echoed Flowers' comments saying they have enjoyed a good working relationship and understanding with Carleton Farms.

"It's a commodoity for us," Vawters said. "We try to support them when they're right but we speak out when they're wrong."

Vawters didn't comment on the lawsuit saying he hasn't seen a copy.

When asked about a planned expansion of the site, Flower said it is simply a small operational expansion and will not affect the amount of waste intake or the environment.

"It's a very small expansion. It will improve the operational design of the facility," Flower said.

But Brewer's not buying that.

"It's going to add years to the dump," Brewer said. "Until they can control what's happening now, they shouldn't be allowed to expand."

Brewer accused Carleton officials of not taking proper environmental measures that would lessen the odor.

"There are so many things (Carleton officials) are not doing," Brewer said.

"One of the things is that when (trucks) come out of the dump, they're supposed to be washed. That sludge has a horrible smell and it's all over the trucks going in and coming out. That's a big thing. There's a list of things you have to do in order to control the smell. They have equipment and they're not using it. I'm sure it costs them thousands of dollars."

Residents living around the landfill have tried the regular channels by literally filing hundreds of complaints. Brewer said Wayne County officials have done nothing to mitigate the problem.

"Whenever we call the county, they send somebody out," Brewer said. "But there's no way to test that. Some days are better than others."

Suspension of the sludge

A day after the class-action was filed, Republic officials announced they will suspend the practice of accepting sludge from waste water plants on or before Aug. 1.

Flower said the lawsuit and the suspension of sludge are unrelated actions.

"We didn't even know about the lawsuit when this decision was made; that was about three weeks ago," Flower said.

The decision to suspend the sludge treatment came from a public hearing with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and area residents, Flower said.

"At a public hearing in April, we heard from residents who voiced concerns about the sludge," said Matt Neely, an executive with Republic, in a May 31 press release.

"Immediately following that we contacted Huron Township, MDEQ subdivision, to come up with a plan to reduce the intake at the site. Upon review, it was clear that the shipments of sludge from municipal water treatment plants were a source of discontent among some of our neighboring residents."

Since the April 19 public hearing, Flower said, Republic officials have been working with the MDEQ, Huron township as well many of the surrounding neighbors to help mitigate the odor.

"There are still options we need to look at in order to help manage the odor," Flower said.

Vawters called the action to stop the sludge intake an "intelligent decision," despite the loss of revenue. Sumpter Township receives a percentage from the amount of tonnage processed at the landfill, Vawters said he wasn't sure how much of that revenue came from the sludge but he expects the township to take a slight hit.

"My thing is that I'm concerned about all of the surrounding communities," Vawters said. "I don't want to slight them by trying to keep a few cents on the dollar from the sludge. It's important we all keep working together."

Vawters said that Sumpter Township receives 65 percent of its total financial makeup from Carleton Farms but still wholeheartedly agrees with Republic's decision to stop the sludge.

Brewer, and her husband Ben, are glad to hear that as they continue to hope that something is done soon.

"The smell and the loss of quality of life. I don't think (Republic officials) really cares about the residents," Brewer said. "In a lot of ways were concerned health wise. We can't have picnic, we can't plan anything for the backyard. Doing the class action was our only choice."

Cutline:

Ben and Traci Brewer have lived in their home at Waltz Village, located in Huron Twp., for 15 years. They can't sell the home because of the odor coming from Carleton Farms.