The Conservancy Initiative (TCI) has learned that Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) had an unauthorized discharge estimated at 27,600 gallons into Johnson Creek on July 6 - 7th. The discharge was from their water treatment facility which is located across Napier Road from the landfill (referred to as the Arbor Hills Remediation Site and described at the end of this article). The unauthorized discharge was self-reported to EGLE by ADS’s contractor upon discovery.
The Conservancy Initiative learned of the event when an email documenting the event was posted on EGLE’s MIWaters database. The Conservancy Initiative applauds EGLE personnel for insisting these records are posted to the public database to promote transparency.
It appears the mismanagement of groundwater wells designed to direct groundwater flows away from the landfill may have caused the unauthorized discharge. Groundwater was being pumped into a holding pond with insufficient capacity causing the pond to overflow into Johnson Creek. This mishap was 100% avoidable and a violation notice is expected to be issued by EGLE. TCI will continue to follow-up to receive clarification on this incident.
Unfortunately, a sample of the material discharged to Johnson Creek was not obtained at the time of the incident so we do not know the true impact on Johnson Creek. This incident fits a pattern of operation we have been accustomed to from ADS. The incident is especially alarming as it happened while ADS is petitioning EGLE to allow the use of Johnson Creek as cost savings by discharge several wastewater streams. This is an excellent example of why we must be vigilant in our opposition to any proposal from ADS to use Johnson Creek for its discharge. We simply cannot entrust the environmental health of the trout stream to an unproven environmental steward.
TCI will continue to obtain more clarity into this event and pass those details on as soon as we learn them. Below is a short description of the wastewater treatment plant on the Arbor Hills Remediation Site.
Arbor Hills Remediation Site
Most of us were unaware that Advanced Disposal Services has a permitted wastewater treatment facility located on the property just east of Napier Road near the Railroad Tracks. This facility has existed since at least 2002 and probably longer. A slurry wall was installed to contain groundwater leaving the Arbor Hills Landfill and the treatment plant was used to treat groundwater on the east side of the slurry wall (outside the landfill). <Click Here for a Drawing showing the layout of the Remediation Site including the wastewater treatment plant and location of the slurry wall.> The permit allows for up to 100,000 gal/day treated groundwater to be discharged to Johnson Creek from December 1 through April 30 via an unnamed tributary that runs along the southern boundary of the Northville Ridge Subdivision.
The treatment plant is no longer needed as the groundwater contamination was resolved as of 2011. The holding ponds associated with the treatment system are now used to hold groundwater which is regularly pumped away from the slurry wall until it can be discharged to the Johnson Creek in accordance with the permit during the winter months. The permit requires close supervision of the facility with daily observations of water quality recorded and water samples analyzed up to 3x per week.