WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. — After four municipalities filed a lawsuit against Wayne Disposal Inc. on Monday, a Wayne County circuit court judge issued a temporary restraining order against any shipments of radioactive material to the facility.
The U.S. Arm Corps of Engineers Buffalo District and contracts working on phase one of remediation efforts at the Niagara Falls Storage Site were expecting shipments of waste to begin next week.
For now, that won't be happening.
Wayne County Judge Kevin Cox signed the restraining order on Wednesday and set a hearing for September 26.
Some 6,000 cubic yards — the equivalent of 8,400 tons of low-level radioactive soil, concrete and groundwater, also referred "technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material" — will be removed from the 191-acre site. Work began in mid-August.
The material is being shipped to Wayne Disposal, but according to several lawmakers in Michigan, no one was notified according to several state and local officials
The lawsuit was filed Monday on behalf of the city's of Belleville and Romulus, along with Canton Township and Van Buren Township.
According to the lawsuit, there are two elementary schools and a church within 500 yards of the disposal facility.
In two separate affidavits filed in the lawsuit, two fire chiefs from separate Wayne County fire departments expressed concerns over responding to any potential emergency at the site.
"The Township Fire Department has engaged in pre-planning for emergency responses, but this location does not have a response plan that would allow emergency first responders to safely enter the structure or grounds surrounding the landfill in the event o an incident involving the radiological waste," Van Buren Township Fire Chief David McInally said.
Similarly, Canton Fire Chief Christopher Stoecklein said in an affidavit that his department is "unable to safely respond to a mutual aid call involving the radiological waste" if such an incident occurs.
Republic Services, which owns and operates Wayne Disposal, said in a statement that they've been collecting similar material for years.
Wayne Disposal Inc. has been safely receiving and managing technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM) for several years, and our management of this material poses no risk to the community. The landfill meets or exceeds all regulations and is designed to safely manage this type of material, which can be generated through a variety of industrial and other processes.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have stated that the material from the Niagara Falls Storage Site does not pose a risk to public health or the community.
Many industries rely on Wayne Disposal Inc. to responsibly manage waste material, and the court ruling, which was issued without a hearing, impacts our ability to serve these customers. It also hinders important environmental remediation activities and interstate commerce. We look forward to presenting our position to the court in the very near future.
The Army Corps of Engineers said: "We are aware of the recent order by the Wayne County Circuit Court to the Wayne Disposal Inc. facility. Our focus remains on safely and efficiently cleaning up projects under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program to protect the health and well-being of communities and the environment. We are currently evaluating how this decision will impact the progress of cleanup at the FUSRAP Niagara Falls Storage Site in Lewiston."