Minutes - 20081117 - Transfer Station

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David Mickey expressed support for the sentiments expressed by Rev. Robert Campbell and the Rogers Road community. He said that a waste to energy facility would not be a sustainable process. Joyce Stanford owns land in Bingham Township. She is opposed to the location of a waste transfer station on all three of the sites. She shares a property line with sites #779 and #056, which are adjacent to her tree farm located behind her home. She said that for 40 years her family has defended Stanford property against entries coming from outside the community. She has lost her home, many acres of land and business, Orange County's oldest and one of the most productive dairies in North Carolina to OWASA for Cane Creek Reservoir. The value of the remaining land in the watershed is compromised by the zoning to five-acre lots, which prevents her family from having full use of the property. She said that the water is in Bingham Township, but the greater need is in Chapel Hill. She said that most of the solid waste is in the three towns of Orange County and there is no practical reason for it to be brought into the Bingham community. She asked the County Commissioners to represent the southwest part of Orange County by supporting the opposition to the waste transfer station. Tony Blake said that he supported a waste to energy investigation. He said that there are suitable ten to fifteen-acre lots along 1-85 and 1-40 that would support a waste transfer station and it does not make sense to haul trash 11 miles out and 11 miles back. Dale Morgan said that she supplied copies of her letter to the Clerk and everything that she has to say is in her letter. Carolyn Kizer said that everything that she was going to say has been said. Bob Goggins owns property in the White Cross area. He said that everything he wanted to say has already been said and he reiterated that the idea of a waste transfer station anywhere besides an industrial zone is a bad idea. Warren Ray asked how the County Commissioners arrived at the three final sites within a mile of each other in the southwest part of Orange County on NC 54. He said that the County Commissioners were supposed to represent all citizens, but they are not representing southwest Orange County because of this recommendation. He said that there should have been a site in northern Orange County, a site in central Orange County, and a site in southern Orange County. He asked for reconsideration of this site. Neloa Jones is a resident of the Rogers-Eubanks community, Co-Chair of the Coalition to End Environmental Racism, and a member of the Roger-Eubanks Neighborhood Association. She spoke about the hardships of the Rogers-Eubanks community over the past 36 years. She said that she empathizes with any community that might host such a transfer site. She asked the County Commissioners to guarantee that certain provisions and compensation to the community asked to host the waste transfer station. Such provisions and compensation could include independent inspections of the facility, elimination of solid waste fees, funding for road and utility improvements, funding for an environmental education center, and support for community-based activities. She pointed out that the Rogers-Eubanks community has never received any compensation. She said that she could not stand by and watch the quality of life of another community sacrificed. She asked the County Commissioners to do what is right for Orange County. Paul Brey lives next to one of the sites that were eliminated, but the station has to be put somewhere. He said that not everyone will be happy. He asked that the County Commissioners put the facility where it makes sense, like the centroid of waste generation. He said that the three sites chosen are far from the centroid and all citizens will pay for it. Eddie Mann is a resident of Bingham Township. He spoke about the process that the County went through 16 years ago for the landfill, where there was a citizen committee. He suggested that there be a similar process for this transfer station with a citizen committee. He suggested that the process be put on hold for 90 days.