Wayne County Commissioners plan to hold a public hearing on Tuesday regarding the controversial plan to transport radioactive waste from New York to a landfill in the town of Van Buren.
The meeting is scheduled for 1:00 PM on Tuesday at: Detroit, Griswold Street, 500, in the Guardian Building, and will be live streamed on YouTube, as well as available via Zoom.
Some officials have expressed concerns about this plan after the Detroit Free Press reported that Wayne Disposal will remove 6,000 cubic yards of soil and concrete, as well as 4,000 gallons of radioactive-contaminated groundwater, from the site in New York, where an atomic bomb was developed during and after the Manhattan Project in World War II.
"The relocation of nuclear waste poses a serious threat to residents of this area and our entire county, and we want to ensure that their voices are heard," - said Wayne County Commissioner Alicia Bell in her statement. "We are the 19th most populous county in the country, and we are adjacent to the largest freshwater supply in the world. Certainly, there are other, less populated and less risky places where this waste could be stored."
It is expected that representatives from environmental agencies will participate in the discussion, including Elizabeth Brown from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, and Patrick Cullen from the county Department of Environmental Services. The Mayor of Van Buren, Kevin McNamara, is also expected to take part. The commissioners aim to provide sufficient information to redirect the hazardous waste elsewhere, according to the Wayne County Commission.
Wayne County Executive Warren Evans previously questioned why waste is being brought into Wayne County. The giant waste processing companies, Republic Services in Arizona — Wayne Disposal and Michigan Disposal — are among the largest hazardous waste landfills and recycling facilities in the country.
"While I understand that these materials need somewhere to go, and few public officials are willing to accept toxic waste with open arms, a solution must be found through new policies or legislation that does not turn Wayne County into a dumping ground for waste that nobody else needs. We simply will not agree to such a purpose," - Evans stated in his remarks.
State and local authorities do not have the power to regulate hazardous waste disposal. In 1992, the US Supreme Court ruled on the import of waste from other states, declaring it a matter of commerce. This case arose when St. Clair County officials attempted to impose restrictions on accepting waste from other states at a local landfill.
State Senator Darrin Camilleri called the waste acceptance plan "alarming" in his statement and urged for a broader discussion on hazardous waste management in the country.
"Wayne County is Michigan's most densely populated county, and our state is surrounded by 20% of the world's freshwater reserves. We cannot continue to be America's dumping ground for toxic waste. Our county and our community deserve better," - Camilleri said.
The meeting will also be broadcast live on the Wayne County Commission's YouTube page and will be accessible via Zoom at https://zoom.us/j/2234975895.
