Michigan residents demand better communication during meeting over radioactive waste coming to Wayne County
(CBS DETROIT) — The Wayne County Commission held a special meeting Tuesday to discuss concerns about radioactive waste heading to a landfill in Van Buren Township.
It's the meeting that many who live around Wayne Disposal wish could have happened before learning last week that the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers plans to send 600 trucks filled with radioactive soil and concrete from the Manhattan Project to the landfill off of Interstate 94 near Belleville Road.
"If they're not getting into the neighborhood and contacting us or asking us for our opinion. It just seems kind of shady," said John Maclean, who lives near the landfill.
When Maclean moved to the neighborhood in 1999, he knew he would live near a landfill. Still, he didn't expect it would be processing hazardous materials, one of the reasons the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded the facility this latest contract.
"I would like to see a report from the Army Corps of Engineers. That'd be nice to see to see what they say about it. I'm just kind of assuming that they're saying that it's going to be taken care of, it's going to be safe–but, you know, the wind usually blows from the dump to here, Maclean said.
Some neighbors don't view it that way.
"I understand their worry, but that's what the place was made for. They got it fixed to where they can take toxic waste. So I mean, I might not make a lot of people happy, but it just doesn't bother me," said Daniel Debord, who lives near the landfill.
However, some are worried about environmental and health risks and are upset with the state regulator, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, which never gave them a heads-up.
"This is regulated by EGLE. EGLE was notified, and they knew it was coming," U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell told commissioners on Tuesday. "I think that there are people that deal with this on such a day-to-day basis that they don't have a political filter or understand that people and communities are going to be very upset and are very worried."
Elected leaders are now pushing for stricter regulations.
Some of the proposals on the table include increasing tipping fees to make waste disposal more costly and imposing limits on the number of hazardous waste facilities allowed in communities.
There is also a call to pass legislation to ensure communities are informed about what waste is brought into their areas.
"I know they say it's not that hazardous, but come on now, whose decision was it to again drive 266 miles from New York to Michigan? And if it's not hazardous, why don't they do it somewhere in New York?" said Wayne County Commission Chair Alisha Bell.
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and Wayne County Executive Warren Evans will hold a town hall meeting next Wednesday, September 4, at 6 p.m. at the Ted Scott Campus of Wayne County Community College in Belleville. Representatives from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, EGLE, and the EPA will also attend.