The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) has detected methane gas migrating from areas of the former Sanicem Landfill, located on South Lapeer Road in Orion Township.
The MDEQ held a public information meeting at Orion Township Hall on Joslyn Road on July 27.
The purpose of the meeting was to provide residents and business owners in the area with information about the environmental conditions and associated risks as a result of methane migration, and to encourage property owners to cooperate with response efforts, including the installation of indoor methane monitors and alarms at some buildings.
Ben Mathews, senior environmental quality analyst for the MDEQ’s Southeast Michigan District office in Warren, said the department has been aware of the migrating methane at the site since summer 2003.
An administrative order was issued to the J. Fons Company/Daniel P. Fons (president), which owned the landfill from 1969-1978, ordering them to investigate and address the methane migration on the property, which is bordered to the east by Bald Mountain Road, to the west by Lapeer Road, to the north by Ellen Drive, and to the south by Superior Court.
Mathews said, so far, the MDEQ is most concerned with the areas of Ellen Drive and North Pointe Drive, where methane migration is concerned.
‘We asked the operator of the former landfill to address the problem, and gave them 30 days to respond,? Mathews said. ‘We did get an answer, but it was not a satisfactory one.?
Mathews said because the J. Fons Company had not addressed the problem, the MDEQ would be stepping in to take care of the work until it does.
‘We will work with them to do what the administrative order requires,? he said. ‘But there will be no criminal charges or anything of that nature…this is strictly a civil case.?
According to Philip Schrantz, chief of the field operations section for the MDEQ, under Michigan law, the department has no legal basis to hold the J. Fons Company responsible for the landfill’s affect on the environment.
‘The landfill doesn’t exist as a business anymore,? he said. ‘There are no records.?
Because the operators of the landfill failed to address a number of deficiencies, including leachate outbreaks (liquid leaching from waste), among other problems, the MDEQ denied a license to continue the operation of the landfill, and it was closed in 1978.
A consent order that same year between the MDEQ and the J. Fons Company required the company to correct the deficiencies at the landfill, which would remain closed during that time.
Corrective actions were initiated by J. Fons in 1981 with the intent of reopening the landfill, but the deficiencies were never satisfactorily corrected, according to the MDEQ. The landfill remained closed.
In 2002, the Brown Road Group purchased the property to redevelop for light industrial use.
At that time, it became known that methane, generated by decomposition of waste in the landfill, was present at potentially explosive levels at and beyond the property boundary.
The MDEQ said that because J. Fons Company and Daniel P. Fons were owners and operators of the landfill at the time the waste was disposed, they are responsible for taking actions to mitigate the hazards created.
Methane gas is a colorless, odorless, tasteless and flammable gas that is lighter than air.
It is non-toxic, but migrating methane gas has proven to pose a potentially serious public health and safety risk due to its flammability.
The MDEQ said fire and explosion can result if methane accumulates at concentrations between five percent (lower explosive limit), and 15 percent (upper explosive limit), in the air of a confined space, which is then exposed to an ignition source.
‘The (waste) in the landfill is a food source for the bacteria,? said Mathews. ‘Chemically, it is identical to natural gas. It can enter (a building) through any opening or permeable spot in a structure.?
Mathews said that methane near the surface of the landfill was not a problem.
‘As you go deeper into the landfill, it’s more compacted,? he added. ‘Methane can accumulate laterally, and that’s what we are seeing in many spots.?
The MDEQ had detected methane as far as the north side of North Pointe Drive.
‘Concentrations vary considerably, but those above 1.25 percent are a concern,? he detected. ‘We’re talking about some rather significant levels of methane.?
Mathews said the MDEQ’s data was still insufficient to show how far the methane has actually traveled.
‘We would like access to properties along North Pointe and Ellen Drive to do work,? he added. ‘We will need access to do indoor air monitoring until the responsible party takes over.?
Mathews believes methane sweeps are a simple way to test for the presence of the gas, until alarms can be installed.
The alarms will plug in and look much like smoke detectors, and can be rigged to either emit a sound or even have flashing lights to alert people nearby to the presence of methane gas.
‘While these devices are not perfect, they will detect methane,? said Mathews. ‘But they will also detect gas, and things like paint thinner.?
According to Mathews, the alarm would sound before the level of methane gets too high.
‘If the alarm goes off, it’s important you leave the building, without activating any electrical devices, like garage doors,? he said. ‘You should call 911.?
Besides methane sweeps and installation of alarms, the administrative order against the J. Fons Company requires it to take methane abatement measures to help remove methane from the soil, and to provide a cutoff system to stop methane from migrating to other areas.?
‘At this time, the owner has not complied, and that’s why the (MDEQ) will be stepping in and doing this work,? Mathews said. ‘But we’ll need property owners? permission to do the daily sweeps.?
Although some data has already been collected, the MDEQ will need sample points from around the entire landfill.
‘We need to install a system to prevent infiltration,? Mathews said. ‘We also want to remove the methane from the soil.?
One of the questions posed to the MDEQ was if soil testing would be done in other areas, such as along Bald Mountain Road.
‘Along Bald Mountain, we do have some negative data that tends to indicate there’s not a concern,? said Mathews.
Mathews acknowledged there is currently an existing methane collection system in operation along the northern boundary of the landfill.
‘But it does not appear to be capturing methane moving off site,? he said.
Mathews said the MDEQ does not yet have a timeline for testing the entire landfill’s perimeter.
‘We try to identify the areas we think have the most risk, and deal with them first,? said Schrantz.
Another question was how confident the MDEQ was that there was no risk to surrounding residential areas.
‘We’re always asking for additional data,? Mathews said. ‘Based on the data we have…We’re most concerned about Ellen Drive and North Pointe Drive now.?
‘We’ll have to continue to carefully monitor the site over time, and deal with what that tells us,? added Schrantz.
A business owner in the area wanted to know how she could explain the situation to her employees ‘without causing panic.?
‘Speak factually, about things we know are there,? said Schrantz. ‘There are a lot of things we don’t know, but we want to bring it to people’s attention in front of something happening.
‘The critical message is, we have enough information to know there is a potential problem, but we need to know more,? he said. ‘We need people’s cooperation to do the work we need to do.?