Preserve Rural Orange
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The mission of Preserve Rural Orange is to preserve, strengthen and defend the
viability of the rural community of watershed land, farms and woodlands
in Orange County, North Carolina.
NO AIRPORT CAMPAIGN A SUCCESS
Reprieve for rural Orange County community
January 9, 2009--In a press conference this morning, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp announced that he has asked the UNC Board of Governors not to create an airport authority to build a new airport in Orange County, and that the university will move its flight operations to Raleigh-Durham Airport. Cliff Leath, Tom Schopler and Laura Streitfeld represented PRO at the press conference in South Building.
Thorp's statement
PRO would like to thank local residents and businesses for your persistence and support in bringing this about. All of the petitions, meetings, letters, phone calls, donations, signs and bumper stickers, with ongoing local media investigation and coverage, have led to this very positive accomplishment in protecting our rural community.
PRO Community Meeting
While we are pleased with Chancellor Thorp's decision, we are continuing to look into options regarding the status of the existing NC Senate Bill 1925, which authorized creating a UNC airport authority.
To contact your state legislators, click on the link below:
NC Legislators
For more information and current news on the UNC airport issue, come to our March 1st community meeting, or visit the News and Links pages on the PRO website.
Reprieve for rural Orange County community
January 9, 2009--In a press conference this morning, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor Holden Thorp announced that he has asked the UNC Board of Governors not to create an airport authority to build a new airport in Orange County, and that the university will move its flight operations to Raleigh-Durham Airport. Cliff Leath, Tom Schopler and Laura Streitfeld represented PRO at the press conference in South Building.
Thorp's statement
PRO would like to thank local residents and businesses for your persistence and support in bringing this about. All of the petitions, meetings, letters, phone calls, donations, signs and bumper stickers, with ongoing local media investigation and coverage, have led to this very positive accomplishment in protecting our rural community.
PRO Community Meeting
October 27, 2008
Photo by Greg Rapp
Photo by Greg Rapp
While we are pleased with Chancellor Thorp's decision, we are continuing to look into options regarding the status of the existing NC Senate Bill 1925, which authorized creating a UNC airport authority.
To contact your state legislators, click on the link below:
NC Legislators
For more information and current news on the UNC airport issue, come to our March 1st community meeting, or visit the News and Links pages on the PRO website.
News Update--January 23, 2010
Over the past week we have learned increasingly alarming details about animal wastewater spilling into Collins Creek from a 1.6 million gallon storage lagoon at the UNC Research Resource Facility in Bingham Township. Despite community members’ requests over the past several years for meetings, public records and proactive communication about facility safety and expansion plans, UNC representatives have responded with delayed communications, misrepresentations and only partial information long after incidents occurred.
Since October 2009, equipment at the facility has repeatedly failed: there was an incinerator fire and malfunction, an ongoing animal wastewater lagoon liner leak reported in December that spilled into Collins Creek in unknown volumes, a 630-gallon wastewater leak in November from pipes that were never bolted together, and a leak last week due to cracked valves (see DENR documents and photos of leaking wastewater).
We are concerned about UNC’s lack of transparency and accountability, delay in reporting an illegal discharge to state authorities (see UNC correspondence), failure to alert neighbors who have repeatedly expressed concern precisely about these hazards, and construction and use of faulty equipment without a permit. These actions endanger public health and the watershed, and result in costly repairs.
Earlier this week Preserve Rural Orange sent a Proposal to UNC administrators, with copies to Orange County commissioners and staff, outlining a series of steps to improve communications, transparency and protection of environmental and human health with regard to current operations and the $27 million expansion underway at the site.
This week the animal wastewater system was shut down to drain about 400,000 gallons from the lagoon and haul it offsite to OWASA, in order to find and repair the liner leak. UNC will pay OWASA more than $2,000 for handling the wastewater, and according to NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) estimates, hauling more than fifty truckloads of wastewater could cost UNC up to $30,000.
Click here for the full update on the UNC wastewater spill
What you can do:
Please join us in contacting UNC-CH Chancellor Holden Thorp and state legislators, asking university leaders to engage in the public process suggested in our Proposal to UNC, and to take the following additional measures:
Chancellor Holden Thorp holden_thorp@unc.edu (919) 962-1365
103 South Building, Campus Box 9100, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-9100
NC Legislators:
News articles:
_____________________________________________ UNC Research Facility
Wastewater Spill in Collins Creek
Wastewater Spill in Collins Creek
Over the past week we have learned increasingly alarming details about animal wastewater spilling into Collins Creek from a 1.6 million gallon storage lagoon at the UNC Research Resource Facility in Bingham Township. Despite community members’ requests over the past several years for meetings, public records and proactive communication about facility safety and expansion plans, UNC representatives have responded with delayed communications, misrepresentations and only partial information long after incidents occurred.
Since October 2009, equipment at the facility has repeatedly failed: there was an incinerator fire and malfunction, an ongoing animal wastewater lagoon liner leak reported in December that spilled into Collins Creek in unknown volumes, a 630-gallon wastewater leak in November from pipes that were never bolted together, and a leak last week due to cracked valves (see DENR documents and photos of leaking wastewater).
We are concerned about UNC’s lack of transparency and accountability, delay in reporting an illegal discharge to state authorities (see UNC correspondence), failure to alert neighbors who have repeatedly expressed concern precisely about these hazards, and construction and use of faulty equipment without a permit. These actions endanger public health and the watershed, and result in costly repairs.
Earlier this week Preserve Rural Orange sent a Proposal to UNC administrators, with copies to Orange County commissioners and staff, outlining a series of steps to improve communications, transparency and protection of environmental and human health with regard to current operations and the $27 million expansion underway at the site.
This week the animal wastewater system was shut down to drain about 400,000 gallons from the lagoon and haul it offsite to OWASA, in order to find and repair the liner leak. UNC will pay OWASA more than $2,000 for handling the wastewater, and according to NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) estimates, hauling more than fifty truckloads of wastewater could cost UNC up to $30,000.
Click here for the full update on the UNC wastewater spill
What you can do:
Please join us in contacting UNC-CH Chancellor Holden Thorp and state legislators, asking university leaders to engage in the public process suggested in our Proposal to UNC, and to take the following additional measures:
- Cease animal wastewater lagoon operations at the UNC Research Resource Facility until DENR concludes its investigation of the illegal discharge into Collins Creek, determines the system’s compliance and permit status, and confirms the safety of continued use
- Apply for a permit for the animal wastewater treatment and disposal system to ensure oversight and safeguards at the facility
- Provide neighbors, PRO and county officials with timely copies of communications and reports about this and future incidents
Contact information:
Chancellor Holden Thorp holden_thorp@unc.edu (919) 962-1365
103 South Building, Campus Box 9100, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-9100
NC Legislators:
Senator Ellie Kinnaird Elliek@ncleg.net (919) 733-5804
Speaker Joe Hackney Joeh@ncleg.net (919) 733-3451
Representative Verla Insko Verlai@ncleg.net (919) 733-7208
Representative Bill Faison Billf@ncleg.net (919) 715-3019
News articles:
UNC's wastewater worries Lisa Sorg, Independent Weekly, January 20, 2010For more information and background, visit the UNC Research Facility page of this website.
UNC warned after leak Mark Schultz, News and Observer, January 21, 2010
January 12, 2010
It’s been an amazing year in rural Orange County, with good news at both beginning and end. A year ago we were getting ready to open the “No Airport” photo exhibit on January 9th when UNC Chancellor Holden Thorp announced that the university would not convene an airport authority or pursue a new airport in Orange County as planned, but would relocate flights to RDU. Afterward we turned our attention to the county’s plans to build a waste transfer station site on Highway 54. Eleven months later on December 7th, Orange County Commissioners decided not to build a new transfer station and instead send chose to trash to an existing facility in Durham and allow time to explore alternatives.
When we first began talking about how to stop UNC’s plans to build an airport over a year ago, our discussion centered on how we would raise enough money to hire a lawyer. A friend and environmental attorney counseled us to build our community first, and this turned out to be the best advice. Fortunately we never had to hire a lawyer at all, and at every step of the way when we looked for help, we found what we needed close to home.
Even as we collectively researched, raised legitimate concerns and came together to oppose plans that would have transformed the rural landscape, none of us could have imagined how much we would accomplish in such a short time. And none of it would have been possible without our uniquely resourceful community....[read more]
_____________________________________________When we first began talking about how to stop UNC’s plans to build an airport over a year ago, our discussion centered on how we would raise enough money to hire a lawyer. A friend and environmental attorney counseled us to build our community first, and this turned out to be the best advice. Fortunately we never had to hire a lawyer at all, and at every step of the way when we looked for help, we found what we needed close to home.
Even as we collectively researched, raised legitimate concerns and came together to oppose plans that would have transformed the rural landscape, none of us could have imagined how much we would accomplish in such a short time. And none of it would have been possible without our uniquely resourceful community....[read more]
ORANGE COUNTY TO USE DURHAM TRANSFER STATION
Bingham Township and Millhouse Road communities are spared
December 7, 2009--Orange County Manager Frank Clifton recommended, and county commissioners voted tonight to formalize an arrangement to send solid waste to the City of Durham's Transfer Station for 3 to 5 years, and to consider waste-disposal options including regional solutions and other possible collaborations. The meeting was packed with county residents, and after the county manager's recommendation there were many impassioned public comments mostly in opposition to the other two options, the Paydarfar site off Millhouse Road and the Howell property on Highway 54 in Bingham Township. Before commissioners made their decision, BOCC Chair Valerie Foushee expressed gratitude to citizens for input throughout the site selection process.
Commissioner Barry Jacobs made the following motion:
- Proceed with an agreement with assurances about reducing waste and promoting recycling
- Amend the current inter-local agreement and get the best possible rate for the county and towns
- Re-engage towns
- Direct county staff and solid waste advisory board to engage in a public process to seek cost-effective alternatives, with a framework beginning no sooner than September 2010
- No additional funds will be spent on consultants unless county commissioners direct staff to do so
For more than a year our community has done an excellent job staying informed and engaged in this issue, which came directly on the heels of the proposed UNC airport last year. Thank you to community members and supporters, and to local churches and businesses who continue to help spread the word about meetings and news affecting rural residents. Thanks to all of your efforts our watershed land, farms and woodlands will be spared for now from becoming an industrial corridor. More to come on protecting Bingham Township from damaging development in the future.
I'd also like to acknowledge Orange County staff and officials who throughout the past year shared their expertise, responded thoughtfully to our questions and comments, and fulfilled requests for public documents promptly. While the issue of how Orange County will dispose of its waste long-term is not resolved, tonight's decision sets us on a more sustainable and positive course for Bingham Township and for the county at large.
-Laura Streitfeld
______________________________________________
UNC Research Facility Expansion in the News
The November 11, 2009 Independent Weekly features the article, "UNC research facility flies under the radar: What are they building in there?"
following an investigation by editor Lisa Sorg into UNC-Chapel Hill's
plans for a $27 million expansion of the UNC Research Resource Facility
in Bingham Township. To learn more about the lab animal facility's
operations, its impacts on neighbors and the environment and the
status of our public records request submitted to the university, visit
the UNC Research Facility page of this website.
______________________________________________
Please join community members opposing a waste transfer station in Bingham TownshipQuestions remain about the Highway 54 site:
In our May 14, 2009 letter to Orange County Commissioners there is a detailed list of significant information that has not yet been disclosed regarding the Highway 54 site.• Costs to county and towns
• Environmental impacts
• Driving routes & disposal location
• Future plans for proposed site
• Consultant’s conflict of interest
Please continue to contact county commissioners, Orange County Planning Director Craig Benedict and Solid Waste Director Gayle Wilson with questions and concerns regarding the potential siting of a waste transfer station in Bingham Township.
Preserve Rural Orange opposes a waste transfer station in Bingham Township that would irrevocably transform a rural and agricultural community into an industrial zone. Given environmental impacts and costs to taxpayers, county and towns, Bingham Township sites should be removed from consideration for a transfer station. The following should be considered in siting a transfer station: costs; interstate & rail access; proximity to the source of waste generation; location in industrial or commercial zone; and water and sewer services. We will continue to urge the county to identify sustainable waste disposal solutions.
______________________________________________
Waste Transfer Station
For documents detailing the progress of Orange County's proposed transfer station sites on Highway 54 West in Bingham Township, go to the Waste Transfer Station page of our website.
Please also look at notices of upcoming meetings on our Meetings & Events page.
______________________________________________
Spring 2009 Newsletter
We hope you will find useful information in this Preserve Rural Orange newsletter. Contents include a recap of accomplishments during our first six months, photos, opportunities for involvement, upcoming meetings, and a timeline of steps to be taken as we transition into a nonprofit organizational structure.
______________________________________________
Steering Committee Nominations
Please submit your nominations for our expanding Steering Committee. Click here for a printable nomination form. Nominations may be sent to our mailing address below or by email to: admin@preserveruralorange.org
Preserve Rural Orange
Post Office Box 1314
Carrboro, NC 27510
Post Office Box 1314
Carrboro, NC 27510
______________________________________________
Visit to the Greensboro Waste Transfer Station
To read and listen to WCHL 1360 AM coverage of Orange County Commissioners’ February 12, 2009 visit to the City of Greensboro Waste Transfer Station, click below:
OC Commissioners Eye Triad Transfer Station
OC Commissioners Eye Triad Transfer Station
Above left: Trash being dumped inside the transfer station. Above right: Commissioner Steve Yuhasz and Greensboro Environmental Services Director Jeri Covington. In the background are trailers and petroleum tanks.
February 13, 2009
Yesterday morning I visited the City of Greensboro’s Waste Transfer Station, on a trip planned for new Orange County Commissioners. I rode in a van from Hillsborough with commissioners Pam Hemminger, Bernadette Pelissier and Steve Yuhasz, Orange County’s Solid Waste Director Gayle Wilson and Solid Waste Planner Blair Pollock, and reporters from the News and Observer, WCHL 1360 AM, and a student reporter and camera person from UNC. When we arrived at the station we were joined by Bonnie Hauser and Susan Walser of Orange County Voice and Forrest Covington, who is working on a video project with Bonnie Hauser. While at the site I took photos and video.
City of Greensboro Environmental Services Director Jeri Covington talked with us and answered questions about the city’s landfill and waste management history and the transfer station’s financing, construction and operations, then took us for a tour inside on the floor, where operations were slowed down for us to walk around. Like the proposed Orange County station, the two-story Greensboro station is entirely enclosed. Inside there was a thick dust in the air that clouded some of my photos, stirred up by the wind blowing in and by the constant motion of trucks and earthmoving equipment driving in and out, dumping and pushing trash across the floor. The smell was not as strong as I anticipated, but walking through the dusty interior I did get a vivid picture of how traffic, noise and airborne particles from an entire county’s waste would affect the ecosystem and watershed in southwest Orange County.
In selecting a site, Jeri Covington noted that they looked for property close to the interstate and near rail lines in an industrial zone. As we saw on our drive in, the station is close to an I-40 exit and and surrounded in all directions by petroleum tanks which Covington called “tank fields.” When it was built in 2005, the Greensboro facility’s cost of construction was $9 million, and the cost of the ten acre property, which Covington said was too small, was over $800,000. She described the station’s funding as a “hybrid,” explaining that they receive funds from city taxes and from tipping fees for taking trash from outside municipalities and companies. At the Greensboro station, garbage is dropped from the upper floor into tractor-trailers below and hauled to the Uwharrie Regional Landfill in Mt. Gilead, North Carolina.
The visit and the van ride were both informative. On the way to Greensboro I spoke with Pam Hemminger, and learned about her background, school board experience and new role as a commissioner. Riding back, Gayle Wilson and Blair Pollock shared their expertise on a broad array of waste management and recycling issues, answering Steve Yuhasz’s and my questions. Wilson discussed the future of the county’s collection centers on Bradshaw Quarry Road and Ferguson Road, one or both of which could close if a collection center were built on the Howell property near the proposed transfer station.
My purpose in visiting the station with the commissioners was to bring back information that would be useful to county residents. At our upcoming meeting on March 1st, PRO members and speakers will share more about recent developments on waste transfer issue. Please feel free to contact us with questions or comments at: info@preserveruralorange.org
