November 14, 2003

LaPorte board vetoes proposal for hazardous-waste incinerator plant

LAPORTE -- A proposal for a hazardous waste incinerator near LaPorte has been voted down.

By a 5-2 vote, the LaPorte County Solid Waste District Board on Wednesday night turned down a request by Ingenero, which first pitched the idea for an incinerator about three years ago.

Despite giving high marks to the technology, doubts were cast by the Broadview Group, an Ohio-based firm hired two months ago to examine a similar burning operation in Bristol, Conn.

Broadview Group President Joseph Bork praised the technology proposed for the incinerator, which relies on extreme heat and scrubbers to minimize air borne pollutants.

"We believe the technology is very feasible and can meet all environmental regulations,'' said Bork.

He also felt the incinerator could trigger industrial growth because of demand for safer forms of hazardous waste disposal.

However, Bork said no waste- burning design is perfect and guaranteed occasional failures in the system that would release potentially hazardous emissions.

Bork also expressed concern about the proposed site on Indiana 39 near the Indiana Toll Road, an area that contains a golf course, along with some industry and housing.

He said he preferred a more remote location to help safeguard against an occasional release of emissions.

Bork also said the incinerator would likely drown in red ink because the proposal called for the burning of mostly tires and electronic waste such as old computers and televisions.

He said those items don't command the type of tipping fees needed to cover the operating expenses of an incinerator.

As a result, Bork said Ingenero might have to accept a greater percentage of higher dollar items such as medical waste, tainted soils and munitions.

Like he's done in the past, Ingenero President Jim Shaw repeated his vow not to accept military weapons and said any new business typically struggles financially at the start.

"We'll do the best we can to keep things clean and not go out of business,'' said Shaw.

According to Bork, there are only three incinerators like the one Ingenero was proposing throughout the world.

For that reason, LaPorte County Solid Waste Board President Marlow Harmon frowned upon LaPorte possibly being a destination for hazardous waste from outside the area.

Harmon also said an incinerator would only destroy about 50 percent of the waste, forcing what remained in the ashes to be landfilled.

"This is not a proven technology yet,'' said Harmon.

Board member Clay Turner said the decision will cost LaPorte not only the much needed 50 jobs projected by Ingenero, but also others from new industry an incinerator could have attracted.

"This was a key opportunity for LaPorte to do some economic development and to be on the leading edge of technology that would bring in other industries,'' said Turner.

Although a licensed corporation, Ingenero, which is based in LaPorte, doesn't actually operate a business, said Shaw.

It consists of 12 board members with varying degrees of expertise in solid waste disposal who organized in hopes of sitting a state-of-the-art incinerator in LaPorte, said Shaw.