MOUNT VERNON — The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency ordered the City of Mount Vernon to begin removing lime sludge from a temporary storage site on Old Delaware Road.
OEPA Director Laurie Stevenson issued the directive today.
In June, the city started hauling lime material from the city’s west lagoon located in the area of Harcourt Road and Ohio 229. Approximately 30,000 dry tons of lime material were taken to a field adjacent to the city’s water treatment plant and street garage on Old Delaware Road.
Stevenson’s directive puts the city on a schedule to remove the material.
By Dec. 31, the city must remove at least 7,500 cubic yards of the lime from the storage site. Another 7,500 cubic yards must be removed by March 31, 2023.
The city must also submit a compliance plan by April 30, 2023, detailing how it will remove remaining material by Dec. 15, 2023.
In the interim, the city must report monthly to the OEPA the amount of material removed from the field and provide an estimate of the amount of lime remaining.
Mount Vernon Mayor Matt Starr issued the following statement regarding the OEPA’s order:
“For the last several months the City has been working hand in hand with OEPA through the process of lime removal and beneficial use. We have done everything that OEPA has asked.
“Today we received an administrative order from OEPA. This order directed us to move this lime from its temporary storage facility at 1700 Old Delaware Road to farm fields on an expedited timeline. We consider this order an endorsement that the lime is safe for farm use.
“The City is signing up farms and seeking other users for the lime. Farmers can call 740-393-9504 to request a beneficial use form so that they can be ready to receive this lime during and after harvest. The City will continue to coordinate with the OEPA on compliance with all applicable laws.”
OEPA final findings and orders
According to the OEPA’s findings, the temporary site is not a beneficial use site and therefore not covered under the city’s beneficial use permit. The agency “began working with the city and informed the city that it must develop an expeditious plan to remove the material from the site.”
On Aug. 25, the city submitted a compliance schedule for removing the lime residuals. The schedule noted a goal of removing the material within two years.
The OEPA notified the city on Sept. 7 that its compliance plan was not acceptable and needed revised. Specifically, it emphasized the need to include a “more expeditious timeline for removal.”
On Sept. 8, OEPA requested the city to address the following in its revised plan:
•A review of the current lime material storage location to ensure no material has been placed within 300 feet of private wells
•A more detailed and succinct timeline for when the lime material will be transferred
•More details on the city’s efforts to find beneficial use application sites
•Specific goals by date
The OEPA said the city’s Aug. 25 compliance plan and Sept. 9 revised plan are “largely speculative,” do not provide for a timely schedule, and do not adequately demonstrate that the material will be managed and stored as a valuable commodity and appropriately managed to prevent releases to the environment.
In addition to the lime removal schedule, the OEPA ordered the city to manage the material on the field to prevent releases to the environment and avoid activities that will cause a nuisance or adversely affect public health, safety, or the environment. That includes controlling fugitive dust and other air emissions that might stem from the removal process.
When removing the lime material, the city has several options:
•Use it on land as a replacement for mined lime used for agronomic benefit
•Use it in accordance with other applicable Beneficial Use permits
•Dispose of it in a licensed solid waste landfill
•Any combination of the above
The city has 30 days to appeal the OEPA’s order.
Public Utilities Director Tom Marshall has said that Mark Johnson, assistant director of the OEPA, assured the city that it was in compliance throughout the process.
Neighbors have voiced concerns about the lime material being close to their wells and in the watershed of the city’s drinking source. On Sept. 5, water breached and overflowed an embankment surrounding the lime sludge.
