Study finds faults in proposed landfill site

Tuesday, January 25th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

PEGGS, Okla. (AP) -- A man who wants to build a landfill in Cherokee County must first explain how he will address the porous rock underlying the site, the state Department of Environmental Quality says. A study by the Oklahoma Geological Survey found the land below and around the proposed site of the Hidden Valley landfill is pocked with faults and cavities that serve as pathways for groundwater. "As a result, the landfill applicant will be required tore-evaluate the landfill site ... and numerous technical requirements must be met," the DEQ said in sending landowner Terry Bailey a notice of deficiency earlier this month.

Bailey's application could be delayed up to 180 days as a result of the concerns. The proposed landfill would be on the banks of spring-fed Clear Creek, which eventually feeds Lake Fort Gibson, a source of drinking water for many communities. Attorney General Drew Edmondson and state Sen. Kevin Easley, the Broken Arrow Democrat who helped found DEQ, are among those who have opposed the landfill site. Landfill opponent Stan Doyle, a Tulsa attorney who owns land near Clear Creek, is hoping the applicants find the landfill cost-prohibitive. "We just hope they'll abandon the effort," Doyle said.

A key proponent of the Hidden Valley landfill said the notice of deficiency will cost his side more time and money, but he believes "it is not a fatal delay." Steve Mason, president of Oklahoma City-based Cardinal Engineering, which is overseeing the application process, said the landfill applicants do not have an immediate response to the DEQ notice. He did not know how much of the 180-day deadline they would take to respond.