—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 15,1977
34
Landfill threatens
(Continued from Page 1)
with Lancaster Farming on
Thursday evening, Shank
noted that contributions to
their cause may be mailed to
the SOS Committee, P.O.
Box 215, Penryn, Pa. 17564. A
special checking account for
the committee has been
established at the Fulton
National Bank. The
secretary further noted that
members of his group have
put together a slide program
which will be available for
public presentation upon
request. Estimating that
several thousand dollars
have already been spent to
fight the proposed landfill,
Shank commented “this is a
never-ending source of
expenditures.”
The citizens involved m
this case got into the battle
when Lancaster County
Judge Paul Mueller over
turned decisions by both
Penn and Elizabeth
Townships to keep the
Will out of their coum
- The battle will now
j heading for a court
test at the state level.
According to Shank, the
Lancaster County Court of
Appeals has already filed its
side of the case and the SOS
Committee has until Nov. 2
to file its documents. An
actual court battle, however,
is not expected until early
next year.
Although the controversy
over the landfill has been
simmering for more than a
year, it hasn’t been until
recent weeks that the issue
has become heated enough
to draw much public at
tention. According to Shank,
this is a battle which may
have even deeper im
plications than the well
publicized dispute last
Spring between the Lan
caster Area Refuse
Authority (LARA) and two
dairy farmers. In that in
cident, the Refuse Authority
gave way to public pressure
and abandoned its plans to
expand their landfill on an
adjacent farm.
There are some significant
differences between that
case and this one at Penryn,
however. The ‘case last
Spring dealth with eminent
domain and an authority
within the Lancaster County
municipality. In the Penryn
case, eminent domain is not
mvolved and the landfill plan
is being forwarded by a
private concern. What’s
more, the land in question is
no longer owned by a far
mer. But it is still being
farmed and reportedly
producing crops which
exceed Lancaster County’s
average
State Representative Noah
Wenger, who played an
active role in publicizing and
eventually winning the
Barley farm versus LARA
case last Spring, admitted at
at meeting last month that a
recently enacted law (HB
111) may not apply in the
Penryn controversy smce
eminent domain is not in
volved. HB 111 was designed
to bridle land acquisitions by
landfills and highways under
the blanket support of
eminent domain.
Wenger, an active
proponent for farmland
preservation and a farmer
himself, was one of several
public officials to attend a
meeting here last month
which was aimed at ex
posing the community’s
opposition to the landfill.
Others present at that
meeting were Ed Simmons
from the Department of
Environmental Resources,
State Senator Clarence
Manbeck, and State
Representative Nick
Moehlmann
Simmons, whose
responsibility with DER
includes overseeing and
directing solid waste
management in this
geographic area, noted that
the original proposal for a
landfill on this site came 2Vz
years ago. Simmons’ office
is obligated to review ap
plications for a landfill
permit, and must grant it if
requirements are met. If
that runs against the desires
of the public, then they in
turn have the right to appeal
it.
To date, the proposed
landfill has not been ap
proved by Simmons’ office,
and his department is
continuing to run tests. “We
want more definition on the
water table and evidence
that the soil will support a
spraying field,” Simmons
acknovledged.
State Senator Clarence Manbeck (standing)
recently exclaimed he’ll fight a proposed landfill
with all high might if pollution problems arise. The
proposed site for refuse disposal covers 70 acres
of Lancaster County cropland and is across from a
housing development. Ed Simmons, solid waste
The land is question is
owned by the real estate
firm of Martin and Hess The
tract was sold for develop
ment and a number of new
homes have already been
constructed along one side of
the road. However, land on
the other side of the road did
not pass required per
culation tests for building
lots. R.E. Wright
Associates wants to turn the
92-acre site into a landfill.
'**r
Although a number ot tests
still need to be made, and the
issue hasn’t reached its
climax, Senator Clarence
Manbeck of Lebanon County
says he’s ready to fight with
all his might if the landfill at
the Penryn site might
contribute to water
pollution. Concern over
water pollution as well as
numerous other con
siderations has been voiced
by growing numbers of
concerned citizens.
~ '*K*
management director for the Department of En
vironmental Resources and Rick Gunning,
treasurer for the SOS Committee, flank Manbeck.
In the right foreground is Jim Bachman, chairman
of the SOS group, which is leading the fight to stop
the proposed landfill in its tracks.
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