LORDSTOWN Village files suit over permit

The county health board granted the permit last month.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- Lordstown wants a judge to declare a company's permit for a construction and demolition debris landfill in the village void.
The village, through Solicitor Paul M. Dutton, filed a lawsuit Friday in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court against Lordstown Construction Recovery; its parents company, LaFarge North America; the county health department and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The village also is asking that the company be barred from proceeding with waste-disposal activities under the permit.
The suit says that the company of has conducted operations in the village for several years including industrial, construction and solid waste and refuse disposal and transfer activities.
"Neither LaFarge nor LCR has held any license or permit [other than a possible dust permit] for the waste storage and disposal operations described ...," the complaint says.
Application approved
On Aug. 22, the county as an agency of OEPA, approved LCR's application for a construction and demolition debris permit. The county didn't notify the village or its residents that the permit application had been filed or that the county was reviewing and considering granting the permit, according to the complaint.
"The county took no measures to seek input" from the village or its residents before granting the permit and "failed to consider the failure of LCR and LaFarge to comply with waste disposal regulations and permitting requirements prior to the application," it says.
The lawsuit also says the county failed to consider the impact of activities at a CD & amp;D landfill on wetlands, ground water and the village, the village contends.
Officials at the board of health and LaFarge couldn't be reached.
The village says the health board had a contractual obligation to consult with the village and to give the village and its residents "an opportunity to be heard" regarding the permit.
At a public hearing earlier this month before the village board of zoning appeals, Lafarge representatives requested a special-use permit to operate a construction debris landfill at its site on Newton Falls-Bailey Road.
The public hearing on the permit request was continued until Oct. 28 to allow board of zoning appeals members to research the proposal further.
The complaint filed Friday says that LCR's representations at the public hearing differ from what's in its permit application, including, "variations in ground water monitoring procedures and days of operation."