Taft OKs law on debris dumps

Taft said the bill 'strikes the right balance.'
By JEFF ORTEGA
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
COLUMBUS -- New oversight requirements for construction and demolition debris landfills are now in place, under a bill Gov. Bob Taft signed into law Thursday.
The new law became effective immediately on the governor's signature.
In an interview, Taft said the measure, sponsored by state Rep. John P. Hagan, an Alliance-area Republican, is fair to landfill operators and those who live near proposed construction debris landfills or could be affected by them.
"It strikes the right balance," Taft, a Republican, said after signing the law.
What it says
The new law, which was approved by the Legislature earlier this month, says that proposed construction debris dumps can't be sited within 500 feet from a residence unless the owner agrees or unless the proposed dump owns the residence.
Also, under the measure, proposed dumps must not be within 500 feet of a national or state park or recreation area or 100 feet from a so-called perennial stream.
Previous state law said that proposed dumps could not be located in a 100-year flood plain, nor could they be sited within the boundaries of a sole-source aquifer.
The new law also contains a grandfather clause covering applications that had been submitted the state before July 1, the date a six-month moratorium on new construction debris dumps went into effect. The moratorium expires Dec. 31.
Exempt
Under the measure, applicants who've "acquired an interest in property," applicants who have begun a hydrogeologic study and engineering study and whose applications would have been complete if the moratorium was not in effect would be subject to current regulations.
There are at least six applications for new construction debris dumps pending in Ohio, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, including two in Trumbull County and one in Mahoning County.