Oct. 24—POTTSVILLE — Natural Soil Products, a biosolids composting facility in the west end of the county, is being fined $500 per day because it hasn't finished installing a system designed to reduce odors by the Oct. 15 deadline.
Residents in Good Spring, Donaldson, Newtown, Tremont and Joliett have complained about the smell from the byproduct of wastewater treatment.
The Gore Biosolids Composting System is required as part of a consent decree between NSP and the state Department of Environmental Protection, which the sides signed in May.
The system "will fully address the issue of offsite malodors," according to a nuisance minimization and control plan filed by the company with DEP on June 23.
"We were told it (the system) should be up and operating by Dec. 1st," Donald Allar, a Frailey Twp. supervisor, said Monday.
He said that Tully Environmental Inc., which had been fined $50,000 in May for violating the Solid Waste Management Act, has been working on the project for months.
The fine in May was levied after DEP found that Tully failed to control or minimize conditions that are "harmful to the environment or public health, or which create safety hazards, odors, dust, noise, unsightliness and other nuisances."
DEP also determined that the company failed to prevent and control air pollution as required by the Air Pollution Control Act at the local facility, which is off Route 125 between Donaldson and Good Spring in Frailey and Porter townships.
"It has smelled on occasion, but nowhere like it used to be," Allar said.
The odor control system has a cover that retains "potential odors compounds" by capturing them in a water film that develops on the inner side of the cover from the heated vapor generated by the biosolids, according to information submitted by Mavickar Environmental Engineering Consultants, Harrisburg, on behalf of NSP.
The trapped compounds then fall back into the pile for more treatment, the information says.
At the Oct. 18 meeting of the Schuylkill County commissioners, residents once again raised concerns about the facility.
The residents have said they've done their own research on biosolids. They said they don't like what they've found and questioned the potential health impact.
Tammy Saltzman, of Good Spring, said she smelled stench on Oct. 13 and 14.
Wendy Madenford, who also lives in Good Spring, said she wants the odor to go away. She didn't want to have to talk about the topic, but feels she has little choice.
"I just want a decent life," she said.