Local Government TV

Monday, March 25, 2024

Nazareth's Mr. Hankey On His Way Plainfield Tp

In November 2021, Allen and Hart Hower sold their 93-acre farm, located in Plainfield Tp, to Nazareth Borough Municipal (BM) Authority for $850,000. The property is probably worth three times as much except for one thing - it is subject to an agricultural conservation easement The Howers not only sold their own rights to develop the property but restricted all future owners from doing so as well.  Under an agreement with Northampton County in 2008, they were paid $606,347 to preserve about 82-acres for agricultural purposes. Given that the use of this tract is mostly limited to planting crops of animal husbandry, why on earth would Nazareth BM Authority buy it? To spread shit, of course. Starting in April, it has clearance from the state EPA to treat the property with what is called class B biosolids. That's a very  saying shit. It's not raw shite. They pop it in an oven first and bake it a bit, just like pizza. But Plainfield Tp citizens have been railing about this for some time. I don't blame them. After all, this is Nazareth shit we're talking about here.  Have you ever seen what they eat here? From pasties (the meat pie, not nipple cover) to Moravian sugar cake, it's no wonder this tiny borough is littered with port-a-potties all over the place. More specifically. this is my shit, for which there really should be a special category.  There's a reason UGI is constantly digging up the streets here. 

Plainfield residents have done what they can do. They've complained to the BM Authority and to the Borough itself, only to be told to shut up. Northampton County Council has listened to them several times, but there's really nothing a county government can do. You see, spreading treated sludge is considered a "normal farming practice" protected under Pennsylvania's Right to Farm Act.  

Exec Lamont McClure made this clear last week at County Council's Energy Committee. Its jurisdiction apparently includes fecal matters, although I'd argue that every one of Council's committees talks shit pretty much nonstop.  "I wish I could stop it, but I can't," said the Exec, before turning around and hurriedly walking away. 

Hey, when you gotta' go, you gotta' go.  

Before making his exit, McClure said that the law needs to change. Maybe it does. But all kidding aside, the reality is that, except for judges and Donald Trump, we all drop anchor from time to time.  Incinerating it or dumping it in the ocean seems far more harmful than spreading cooked crap over farmfields.

The real outrage here is that Nazareth BM Authority had land within a stone's throw of its treatment plant with which it could spread sludge. Instead of doing so, it sold the land for $53.1 million to a warehouse developer. 

I believe the Right to Farm Act should be amended, but not to ban sludge. Instead, any sewage disposal authority should be confined to disposing of human waste within its own service area unless it can demonstrate with a Declaratory Judgment action that it has no option. 

16 comments:

  1. No politician will solve this issue only Trump could get rid of the shit.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Many have said your blog is responsible for spreading biosolids on many topics.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Limiting the geography within which you may spread your shit is bad for taxpayers. The marketplace for shit must be thoroughly plunged in an effort to provide the best bang for the shit. Your authority made a pretty awesome deal by selling their land for good money, and still finding a home for their shit. Shit's legal. Plainfield doesn't apologize for their landfill stench, while they enjoy the economic benefits of the stench pile. I wouldn't choose to live there. But many do. And those who do, doo doo, too.

    ReplyDelete
  4. One may choose to give a shit. One may not have a choice but to take a shit. The universe has constants.

    ReplyDelete
  5. "I wish I could stop it, but I can't," said the Exec, before turning around and hurriedly walking away.


    Instead of running away from the issue, why doesn't McClure get a little proactive and do something about it?

    The county approves new preservation easements every year. Why not add this practice to the list of things that current and future owners can't do as a condition of receiving approval for the easement? It might not solve the current problem in Plainfield Township, but it might prevent this from happening in other areas in the future.

    Then start working on the BM Authority and the borough to get them to change their practice in Plainfield Township. Surely the county approves some funding or has some other leverage they could use to get a change in policy here.

    That is, if McClure is REALLY against this, and not just trying to pass the buck.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I believe what you're proposing would be prohibited by state law.

      Delete
  6. Every time McClure makes some of his self-laudatory speeches he is spreading his own brand OF BIOSOLIDS.HE could start by stopping that practice.

    ReplyDelete
  7. 11:27, The county already requests farmland preservation applicants to agree voluntarily not to spread biosolids, but it is nonbinding. The county has no authority to direct conservation easement recipients to refuse to apply biolsolids bc it would violate the state Right to Farm Act.

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a shitty story.

    ReplyDelete
  9. And the contents of the biosolids not destroyed by heat end up incorporated in the vegetation. Does anyone believe that only old "shit" is in that waste.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I dated a girl from Nazareth who thought her shit didn't stink. Perhaps this is much ado about nothing.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Bernie, when you let me hidey hoe go that's the fart heard around the world. It also registers on the rictor scale as a 10.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Spread it in fields or discharge it into rivers.

    Pick your shit.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Do what they did down in Hellertown on Route 78. Dump the shit on the road and let someone else pick it up and dispose of the shit.
    Not only did they get manure to dispose of they also got mushrooms with it. This is no shit. This is the truth. You can google it and see for yourself.
    Also, right after that happened, they had another accident where a dump truck dumped HAIR all over the road. Last I heard the Hellertown Police are "combing" the area for clues.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Bernie, it would be very interesting if sometimes you could make a comparison of the efficiency and political leadership between Norco and Lehigh County government, like maybe a year end rating' and evaluation of the things they do for the taxpayers.,

    ReplyDelete
  15. PFAS and other heavy metals, as well as hundreds of new chemicals disposed of down the drain, are unregulated by 805 Rule. They can't be discharged in the creeks, but they can be solidified and dumped on farmland where our food chain IS affected. It is a disgusting end-around that no politician wants to fight because of the municipal wastewater and sludge lobby, who fund these politicians and political parties.
    We the people suffer at the hands of our political money that feeds the power hungry. To hell with doing what is right for the health and safety of the people. Just dump it. Only a few care enough to fight it in little pockets across the country.

    ReplyDelete

You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.