By: Lydia Crawley The Parsons Advocate
The Tucker County Solid Waste Authority was recently reported to the Health Department for dumping leachate into the sewage treatment plant in Davis. TCSWA Board Member and Tucker County Commissioner Fred Davis informed the Board at their regular meeting on September 29th.
“I got a call from the Health Department, we’ve been dumping leachate into the sewer plant in Davis,” Davis said.
Davis said he informed the Health Department that the Landfill did not transport or treat leachate at the Davis facility. He assured the Department that it had never occurred and would not occur. Davis also said he was asked if he was on the Board to which he said that he was and that he also worked for the Town of Davis and could assure that they were not taking leachate at their facility.
“We do not take leachate to Davis,” TCSWA Presiding Chair Mark Holstine said.
In the month of August, the Landfill hauled 785,996 gallons of leachate to treatment facilities in Moorefield, WV and Westernport, MD solely. In that month, Moorefield received 60 semi truck loads and Westernport received 61 for a combined 121 loads of leachate required to remove the nearly 786,000 gallons.
A typical water treatment facility cannot handle the treatment of leachate. Leachate is reported to have high levels of complex contaminants such as heavy metals. The substance requires substantial specialized treatment such as coagulation and flocculation,advanced oxidation processes, ion exchange and reverse osmosis, among others, which typical treatment plants simply do not supply.
The TCSWA do not treat leachate at any facility other than Moorefield, WV or Westernport, MD, according to the Authority. No leachate is treated in Tucker County facilities.
