Post-meeting release 6/9/22

Commissioners share draft resolution concerning landfill expansion plans, speak with Richland Co. building dept.

[Tiffin, OH – June 9, 2022] — The Seneca County Board of Commissioners continued discussion Thursday morning on a draft resolution that would publicly oppose the proposed expansion at Sunny Farms Landfill.
County staff has been working on incorporating feedback from the public into the draft resolution after the language for it was first introduced last week.
Commissioner Tyler Shuff read the draft in full, and the commissioners discussed its contents before referring the document to the prosecutor’s office to ensure its legality.
The most recent draft of the resolution provides information about the proposed expansion and some of the landfill’s past transgressions.
Although the commissioners have no direct authority over the regulation of landfills, the draft states that the board still hopes to work collaboratively with Seneca County General Health District, Ohio EPA and all other regulatory authorities to ensure that the landfill complies with all state and federal rules and regulations.
The draft resolution concludes by encouraging the health department to invest more funding into hiring environmental experts to closely monitor the landfill. It also respectfully requests that WIN Waste Innovations® rescind its Permit to Install Application for expansion of the north unit until Sunny Farms Landfill demonstrates compliance with the Clean Air Act and with all other state and federal rules and regulations, as required of all solid waste facilities in the state of Ohio. The resolution states the board’s opposition to any expansion at the landfill and urges leaders to make significant improvements in controlling emissions and completely mitigating potentially harmful health effects at the landfill’s current size.
You can view the most recent version of the resolution here.
The commissioners are scheduled to meet again at 10 a.m. on June 23rd at their office, 111 Madison St., when the discussion surrounding the resolution is expected to continue.
In other action, Kara Russell, of the Richland County Building Department, spoke with the commissioners.
She also addressed the board in September of 2020 to discuss the commercial permitting and inspection processes. Richland County currently handles commercial permitting and inspections for Seneca County.
Each of the commissioners relayed some concerns from builders and contractors that there have been some lengthy delays in the permitting process.
Commissioner Mike Kerschner referred to “mounting frustration” from contractors in the community, including “very major concerns” with permitting delays on larger projects.
He said he receives monthly complaints about these issues, and he said the perception is that the service is not good enough.
Shuff said the commissioners are “shopping” around for other options or ways to ensure better service.
“We have a lot of projects going on right now … we can’t have projects being log-jammed,” he said.
Also during the session, Tiffin-Seneca Economic Partnership Development Manager Adam Gillmor said there should be an announcement soon on who the organization’s next president and CEO will be.
Kerschner said he was happy with the process and that the candidates had been narrowed down to a final two.
During new business, the board approved all resolutions and appropriations from the agenda.