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Regulators Issue Notice Of Intent To Deny To Elcon Application

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By

Tom Sofield
Elcon’s proposed site plan.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com

Just two weeks after the Falls Township Board of Supervisors batted down land development plans for a hazardous waste treatment facility, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has issued a “notice of intent to deny” the Phase II Part B commercial hazardous waste treatment and storage facility application.

On Wednesday morning, the DEP made public a letter sent to Elcon officials stating that the application had 18 “deficiencies” that led to the daft notice to deny.

“After a rigorous review of the application, supplemental materials submitted by the company, and input from the public, DEP will not approve this application in its current form,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “Unless the company can address these outstanding deficiencies, DEP will have no choice but to move forward with a full application denial.”
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The DEP had a May 26 deadline to complete their commercial hazardous waste treatment and storage facility application technical review of the facility that is proposed for 100 Dean Sievers Place in the Keystone Keystone Industrial Port Complex. They finished their work early and issued their intent to deny letter.

DEP still plans to open a 45-day comment period from June 1 through July 15. All comments can be emailed to RA-EPHWELCON@pa.gov.

While the intent to deny is a blow to Elcon’s plans, the firm will still be able to submit new or updated information to address the problems DEP had with their application.

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“Should Elcon cure the deficiencies to the satisfaction of DEP, the notice of intent to deny could be withdrawn and a draft permit prepared, which would then be subject to its own public notice and comment requirements. Should Elcon not cure the deficiencies to the satisfaction of DEP, DEP could then proceed to a final action and deny the application,” McDonnell wrote in his letter to Elcon officials.

McDonnell’s letter notes some of the following problems with the application: part of the plans show a section of an office building and parking lot outside of the site boundaries, missing paperwork, the proposed groundwater monitoring program does not provide for routine monitoring after the one-year baseline monitoring has been finished, problems with the radiation detection procedures, unclear statements relating to liquid waste, and a wrong phone number listed in paperwork.

Credit: Elcon
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Virginia Cain, a spokesperson for DEP, said the company still has applications for stormwater and air quality under review by the DEP. Those reviews are not part of the May 26 deadline.

The controversial Elcon proposal was handed a major setback late last month when the Falls Township Board of Supervisors denied land development for the company during a packed meeting at Pennsbury High School.

Elcon’s plans are to construct their “state-of-the-art” facility on a 22-acre portion of a 33-acre property. According to past filings with the DEP, Elcon expects to employ about 55 people at the automated facility that can handle about 410 metric tons of waste a day. The facility has been expected to process 150,000 to 210,000 tons of chemical and pharmaceutical waste that would be transported to the facility via area roads every year.

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Many residents in Bucks County and New Jersey have vocally opposed the plans.

“This is a one-two punch to Elcon, one from the PA DEP and another from Falls Township. Elcon should get the message that they should withdraw their application and leave. This may end the con from Elcon. Stopping this dangerous project will help protect the Delaware River from all of its toxic chemicals,” Jeff Tittel, director of the Sierra Club of New Jersey.

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Fred Stine, who works for the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, said in an email that the public should submit their comments to DEP during the June 1 to July 15 comment period.

 

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Tom Sofield

Tom Sofield

Tom Sofield has covered news in Bucks County for 16 years for both newspaper and online publications. Tom’s reporting has appeared locally, nationally, and internationally across several mediums. He is proud to report on news in the county where he lives and to have created a reliable publication that the community deserves.