Elcon Appeals Falls Twp.’s Denial

Elcon has filed an appeal to the Falls Township Board of Supervisor’s April 30 denial of their land development plans for a proposed hazardous waste treatment facility.

The appeal does not yet have a court date at the Justice Center in Doylestown Borough. It was filed by lawyers representing Elcon last week, as first reported by the Bucks County Courier Times.

The appeal, which was reviewed at the Justice Center by this news organization on Tuesday, lays out Elcon’s case that they believe Falls Township officials did not act in good faith.

Elcon has proposed building their “state-of-the-art” facility on a 22-acre portion of a 33-acre property at 100 Dean Sievers Place in the Keystone Industrial Port Complex. According to past filings with the state, 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.

In the 40-page court filing, Elcon said Falls Township acted in bad faith and that the Supervisor’s decision failed to provide legal basis for denial.

“The township and the board failed to fulfill their obligation to proceed in good faith when they denied the application” without giving Elcon enough time to respond to review letters about the land development plan for the site, according to the appeal.

“The township and the board breached their duty of good faith by, among other things, failing and refusing to openly and fairly discuss technical and ordnance requirements relating to the revised plans and failing to provide appellant a reasonable opportunity to cure any alleged defects relating to the proposed project after such discussion,” Elcon lawyers stated.

Elcon also raised problems with how heavily the Supervisors leaned on township ordinance and its compliance before voting on the proposal, which was for preliminary land development. They made the case the township did not have to comply with every ordinance during preliminary land development, which is followed by final land development.

The Israel-based hazardous waste treatment facility company said that the Supervisors denial of the application was “erroneous, arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and contrary to law.”

The plan laid out by Elcon had the facility processing pharmaceutical manufacturing, petroleum refining, chemical, and semiconductor manufacturing waste that would be transported to the facility every year, according to filings with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP.)

Under their plans to state officials, Elcon has proposed treating hazardous wastewater through evaporation after being placed into an indoor closed-loop system. The process would use chemicals, sludge filtration, thermal treatment, steam stripping, distillation, salt concentration, salt crystallization, and salt drying processes. The leftover distilled water would be reused to cool equipment at the facility. Elcon calls their process “thermal oxidation.” Solid waste leftover would be transported by truck to an off-site permitted hazardous waste landfill outside of the area.

In past DEP filings, Elcon noted they have an agreement to purchase the 33-acre lot at 100 Dean Sievers Place for $2.9 million. The land is owned by U.S. Steel and was previously part of the massive Fairless Plant.

Elcon’s state DEP application is still active.

The majority of those in attendance during public meetings have appeared to be against the plan. When the Supervisors voted down Elcon’s preliminary land development in April, the crowd broke into cheers.

Falls Township officials did not have a comment on the appeal.

Related:

• Regulators Issue Notice Of Intent To Deny To Elcon Application
• Falls Twp. Supervisors Deny Elcon Hazardous Waste Treatment Proposal
• Elcon Land Development Comes Before Falls Twp. Supervisors On Tuesday
• Falls Twp. Planners Turn Down Elcon’s Plan
• Falls Twp. Supervisors Schedule Special Meeting On Elcon Plans
• Residents Come Out In Droves To Speak Against Elcon; Township To Hold Special Meeting
• Residents Sound Off To State Regulators About Elcon Plan
• Activists Hosting Meeting On Elcon In Fallsington
• At NJ Meeting, Activists Raise Alarm Over Elcon Facility
• Elcon Plans Undergoing Technical Review
• PA DEP Returns Elcon Phase II Application
• Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Plans To Again Undergo State Review Process
• Elcon Phase II Application Returned By State Officials
• ‘Fridays With Fitzpatrick’ Rally Takes Environmental Focus
• Phase II Application Submitted For Proposed Elcon Facility
• Elcon Moving Forward With Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Development Plans
• Bristol, Middletown Pass Resolutions Opposing Elcon
• County Commissioners Say They Trust DEP With Elcon Process
• Elcon To Submit Documentation To State Within 70 Days
• Elcon Presents To Lower Makefield & Tullytown Stresses Opposition to Falls
• Elcon Attempts To Clean Up Narrative Regarding Proposed Facility Near Delaware River
• Public Meeting On Proposed Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Set For Tuesday
• Falls Will Not Take Action To Prevent Elcon
• Opponents Of Proposed Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Work On Battle Plan
• Proposed Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Passes Phase I Of DEP Application
• Opponents Speak Against Proposed Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility At Commissioners Meeting
• Bristol Twp. Officials Don’t Want Hazardous Waste Trucks Trucks On Township Roads
• Philadelphia Water Department Study Says Proposed Facility Could Put “Millions At Risk”
• Dozens Come Out To Public Hearing For Proposed Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility
• Company Promises Residents Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Will Be “Clean, Green & Sustainable”
• Public Does Not Seem Impressed With Proposed Liquid Hazardous Waste Treatment Plant
• Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Proposal Could Come Back To Falls Twp.
• Plans For Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility In Falls Get Denied By DEP
• N.J. Towns Oppose Proposed Falls Twp. Hazardous Waste Treatment Center
• Company Hoping To Build Hazardous Waste Treatment Facility Cancels Next Meeting in Falls
• Residents Voice Concerns On Hazardous Waste Facility in Falls