EATON — The Preble County Commissioners received a phone call from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency during a regularly scheduled meeting on Wednesday, June 3, to discuss reoccurring violations at the Preble County Landfill.

Commissioners Chris Day and Rodney Creech took the call from Russ Brown and Jill Olberding of the EPA to discuss multiple notices of violations or “NOVs” at the landfill beginning in February of this year.

Brown informed the commissioners while NOVs happen and the NOVs received are not major violations, a general lack of urgency in correcting the issues is of concern to the EPA and wanted to bring the issues to the attention of the county commissioners before things “got bad.”

The two cited a 2001 enforcement case opened against the landfill as an example of what could happen if issues continue.

According to the EPA, NOVs sent to the landfill over the past several months included:

•Ponding at the toe of slope located where Phases 2B1 and 2B2 meet.

•Erosion of the sand layer along the southern slope of phase 2B1. The erosion in the sand drainage layer must be repaired, and the minimum one foot thickness re-certified before waste can be placed in the area.

•Dust cloud from the haul road were observed as vehicles came and left the facility; no water truck/tank was being utilized at the time of inspection.

•The facility has worked to remove trees and brush growing on intermediate cover, but brush still remains on many area of intermediate cover.

•The control box on the leachate management system was not readable. The pump hour’s readout was not operating.

•Exposed waster south of the working face. The areas noted have not received any waste placement in a least 30 days and, as such, now require intermediate cover.

•Leachate outbreaks were observed in numerous areas on the intermediate cover of the landfill.

The EPA noted a NOV was given for litter blowing around the landfill, and upon the next inspection designated workers were walking the landfill attempting to collect blowing litter. This was used as an example of corrective actions being sought by the EPA for the issues.

Olberding told commissioners, “It’s not bad that violations are happening, it’s just that some have been sitting there since February unaddressed.”

Sanitary Engineer Randy Gilbert joined the meeting following the phone call to discuss the issues with commissioners. Day told Gilbert by the time of the next inspection these issues needed to be corrected.

“That’s not possible,” Gilbert said. “There are not enough hours in the day to get everything done before she comes again.”

Both commissioners responded by saying progress should be seen by the time of the next inspection.

Gilbert did inform commissioners the sand erosion had not been corrected because they are waiting for a grass seeder to come in. He informed commissioners, any cover placed on the erosion would be wiped away after the first rain and the landfill staff was waiting until they could seed grass to help prevent the erosion.

“We have got to do whatever is going to make satisfied,” Day said. “The point being is that they are tired of writing violations that aren’t being addressed.”

Day asked Gilbert to come back to the Monday, June 15, meeting to show what progression has been made in order to correct the issues.