Wage Increase Deceptive, Say Feds

Another Snow, Another Day Off In W-b Area

By LISA SCHEID; Times Leader Hazleton Bureau Chief
 Sunday, January 16, 1994 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1 &amp; 13A QUICK WORDS: LANDFILL SITE TOO
DANGEROUS FOR MINE PROJECT 





HAZLETON -- From the time he was 6 years old, Ron Kripp hung around the
Hazleton city landfill, now known as Crystal Ridge Landfill, on Route 924,
watching trucks dump barrels, some containing chemicals, into abandoned strip
mines. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 When he became old enough, he worked for the landfill authority, using a
bulldozer and front-end loader to bury what he now believes was toxic waste. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Since the landfill closed in 1980, Kripp has become disabled. The
47-year-old blames the city job for the lumps that have formed on his body --
baseball-sized tumors that surgeons have removed five times. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The doctors tell me that it's from chemicals," Kripp said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kripp has joined a local environmentalist to petition Mayor John Quigley to
drop the Crystal Ridge Landfill area from consideration for a possible
mine-reclamation project. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Quigley is considering two 300-acre sites, both off Route 309, for the
project, which would include cleanup of strip-mined land and possible
development for recreation and business projects. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The city has allocated about $500,000 for the 15-month, three-phase study
of the land to tell the city what it might do with the property that was
strip-mined 70 years ago. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A Harrisburg firm, Groundwater Science, will receive $81,150 for the first
phase of the study, involving the 300-acre site west of 309 that includes the
landfill. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Groundwater Science study, to begin later this month, will include
reviews of state and federal studies and interviews with area residents. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In a related project, Hazleton Environmental has a city grant to try to
purify mine water for human consumption. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kripp says the city should halt plans now to include the landfill -- on one
of the sites -- in the reclamation project because he buried or witnessed
other workers burying industrial solvents. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 His concerns are shared by environmentalist Phil Kaufman. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 `~~~~~`If (the landfill) ever catches fire, there's enough chemicals there
to blow Hazleton off the face of the earth," Kaufman said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kaufman is president of Citizens Against Hazardous and Nuclear Waste, a
local organization he says has about 50 members. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He brandishes a 1982 Environmental Protection Agency report to support his
assertion that the landfill is unsafe. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The EPA report supports and fails to support Kaufman's worries: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The report estimated 8,300 gallons of sludge and solids leaked into the
soil at a rate of as much as 1,200 gallons a year for 10 years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But, the EPA did not conclude there is any risk to the 100 people who live
near the landfill. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kaufman worries because the chemicals drain into a series of deep mines,
tunnels and shafts that eventually travel to the Susquehanna River. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kaufman also worries because the landfill has a history of disposal
problems. The chairman of the solid-waste authority pleaded guilty to illegal
disposal and was fined after a six-week investigation in 1975 by city police. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The mine land the city is considering using is owned by Pagnotti
Enterprises, a mining company based in Pittston. The city has leased the land
from Pagnotti and will consider purchasing it if reclamation begins. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Kaufman has threatened to ask federal agencies to intervene if the city
persists with the study. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The city has too much at stake to admit the landfill is toxic, Kaufman
contends. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But Quigley has vowed to complete the study. He would be prohibited by
state laws from building on a landfill but could clean up the landfill and
build on adjacent property. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Groundwater Science, in its proposal, has said the site might be considered
a federal Superfund site, which could make money for the reclamation project
available. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Coal breakers, spoil piles, pits and high walls mar the terrain of both
parcels, according to a preliminary review by Groundwater Science. Other
potential problems include possible wetlands, open or poorly capped shafts,
open mine holes and mine fires. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Quigley understands he might be bringing problems out in the open. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We want to have our consultant try to make sense out of what's been done
out there," Quigley said. "I want to bring it out in the light of day and see
what's there. "

Landfill Site Too Dangerous 
For Mine Project, Mayor Told 
Former Crystal Ridge 
Landfill Employee And An 
Environmentalist Caution The 
Mayor About Buried Toxic 
Waste

Landfill Site Too Dangerous For Mine Project, Mayor Told Former Crystal Ridge Landfill Employee And An Environmentalist Caution The Mayor About Buried Toxic Waste