Public Meeting Held On Proposed Waste Treatment Plant In Bucks County
By Diana Rocco
FALLS TOWNSHIP, Pa., (CBS) -- A public forum was held Tuesday night over plans for a liquid hazardous waste treatment plant in Bucks County.
Some who live in Falls Township are voicing their opposition to the plant which would be built near the Delaware River.
"We don't want it. We don't want it. We're done," said a resident.
In what was at times a heated exchange a group of Falls Township community members demanded answers from a chemical recycling company.
"Why isn't it out in the desert or someplace else?" asked a resident.
Elcon is planning to build the first chemical treatment plant of its kind in the Northeast on the Morrisville-Falls Township border, feet from the banks of the Delaware River.
"I don't want it. I just don't want it," said a resident.
Odor, noise, chemical danger and truck traffic have residents worried.
"It's the chemicals. It's the area, it's the river," said a resident.
"We have a lot of kids around here, this area is connected by the major highways, the rail hub for the East Coast and everything and so what's going to happen is just like in Paulsboro, it could be a derailment right here on the highway and they can't guarantee what's in there," said another resident.
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has already denied Elcon's first request this year. This would be their second in months.
"We don't want the plant and we will remember when election time comes," said a resident.
Elcon plans to ship diluted waste from chemical and pharmaceutical companies by truck and train and then vaporize it. A solution of chemicals and water they say to be completely contained within a 110,000 square foot facility encompassing 22 acres on the Keystone Industrial Port complex.
"The waste is already being created by companies and industries in this area. All we are trying to do is provide a sustainable solution and not ship the problem, but to treat it and it for good to the point of clean water," said Dr. Rengarajan Ramesh of Elcon.
If approved, this plant could take years to actually break ground. The public will have another chance to be heard Wednesday night at a meeting hosted by the DEP at the Bucks County Hotel.
