Monroe County Commissioners unanimously approved on Tuesday night a resolution of support for two state bills that would require liners for coal ash ponds. In a resolution drafted by Monroe County Attorney Ben Vaughn, Commissioners stated their support for House Bill 756 and Senate Bill 297 and intend to send their signed resolution to state lawmakers. The resolution states that coal combustion residuals should be “disposed of in solid waste facilities that, at a minimum, contain liners and leachate combustion systems that meet or exceed the design standards for new municipal solid waste landfills of household garbage and trash.”
The resolution also reiterated Commissioners’ support for bringing potable water to areas of Monroe County dealing with contaminated wells. Commission Chairman Greg Tapley was in Washington, D.C. for a National Association of Counties (NACo) meeting, but he voted in affirmation via telephone. In addition, Chairman Tapley said he intends to meet with U.S. Senators David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler on Wednesday to discuss the private well contamination issue that has come to light over the last month.
In addition, commissioners approved by a 4-0 vote to contract with Duke University geochemistry and water quality professor Dr. Avner Vengosh to perform well testing on 100 private wells near Juliette’s Plant Scherer over the next four months. Commissioners initially intended only to test 12 wells with an emphasis on toxic hexavalent chromium but, at Dr. Vengosh’s recommendation, expanded the testing to 100 wells due to additional concerns expressed by Monroe County residents about uranium and radon. The testing will include an isotope study that is designed to determine the origin of the contamination, including evaluating the impact of Plant Scherer’s ash ponds on nearby drinking water. Elements measured in the study include: calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, chloride, sulfate, nitrate, bicarbonate, hexavalent chromium, total chromium, lithium, boron, manganese, cobalt, copper, rubidium, strontium, molybdenum, cadmium, antimony, silver, barium, lead, thorium, uranium, thallium and radon.
Dr. Vengosh, whose doctoral student Rachel Coyte will lead the testing, will hold a future town hall meeting to enlist persons wanting to have their wells tested. At the conclusion of the study, Dr. Vengosh will present a written report to Monroe County Commissioners as well as reveal the results of the testing publicly in another town hall meeting. The entire study, which will begin in mid-March with homeowner recruitment and sampling, is expected to take about six months from start to finish. The cost of the Duke University study is $50,000, which will come from the county’s contingency.
District 4 commissioner George Emami said he has done his own research on Dr. Vengosh. Commissioner Emami said, “It sounded like to me that this was a very reputable source and someone that we can trust with the results. My understanding is they’ve (Dr. Vengosh and his assistants) had results that were produced that were both favorable for power companies and some that were not so favorable.”
In addition, District 2 Commissioner Eddie Rowland said he has reached out to State House District 141 Representative Dale Washburn, who represents Juliette, to try to convince Georgia Power to allow Dr. Vengosh to test Plant Scherer’s wells also. County Manager Jim Hedges said in the meantime Commissioners will continue moving forward with plans to bring county water to affected areas. Hedges said 68 miles of county road in the Juliette area that would require additional water lines. Commissioner Emami said he believes the well testing results will provide a more clear determination of what steps Commissioners need to take next. Commissioner Emami said, “The stakes are so big on this. I feel that we have to eliminate any shadow of doubt about what the data says before we make any final decisions that are going to be quite costly.”
Juliette resident Michael Pless told Commissioners he was pleased with their actions on Tuesday.
“I am incredibly proud of you guys,” Pless said. “You make me proud. Those are some strong men that will stand in the face of angry citizens. . . and you weathered through it. And you’re doing the right things. And you’re doing better than some of the people that get paid much better than you probably do. You guys are strong men, and I appreciate you.”
