# Aerial photo shows plumes of cement leachate



## Hamilton Reef

Con: More leachate testing is necessary

The fairness issue can be summarized by the statement: "Why should the poor folks of Alba be exposed to toxic waste from rich folks in Bay Harbor?"

http://www.record-eagle.com/opinion/local_story_054094621.html


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## radiohead

Having just read this more than 2 year old conversation you have been having, mostly with yourself I might add, I can conclude but only one thing:
Vote for Ralph Nader !








Hamilton Reef said:


> Con: More leachate testing is necessary
> 
> The fairness issue can be summarized by the statement: "Why should the poor folks of Alba be exposed to toxic waste from rich folks in Bay Harbor?"
> 
> http://www.record-eagle.com/opinion/local_story_054094621.html


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## Chuck1

Disgusting... To say the least.


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## homerdog

Hamilton Reef said:


> The Engler administration impact on fish or human health was not important. This was all about money corruption at the top of the Engler administration with John Engler, developer campaign contributor Dave Johnson, former DEQ Russ Harding, and former DNR director KL KOOL. KL Kool also gave Dave Johnson the public land South Fox Island and Dave Johnson then gave Kool a job after he was fired from the DNR.


So Englers influence goes back six decades when the plant first became operational?


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## RoadKillCafe

They could just close the quarry back in, fill it with sand .. then all the McMansion owners can stare at their big sandpit :evil:

Some way or another, locals will end up paying for it


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## Hamilton Reef

The key to addressing the environmental mess at Bay Harbor is knowledge

http://www.petoskeynews.com/articles/2008/04/11/opinion/doc47fcd91beaf5b629440149.txt

04/09/08

What does it mean for our drinking water, is it safe to swim and is it being handled appropriately?

These are the questions Emmet County residents have faced since news of water contamination around the Bay Harbor shoreline surfaced.

The Bay Harbor environmental mess is scary in many ways, mostly because its difficult to understand.

Most recently Star Township residents learned that the Emmet County mess was spilling over into their backyards. CMS Energy proposes to dispose of contaminated water from Bay Harbor deep into an injection well in Alba. Star Township has since appealed permits approved by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and federal Environmental Protection Agency to install the well.

And those who think they dodged a bullet with Alba taking on the waste, think again. We learned the search for a local seepage treatment site from which treated water would be discharged into Little Traverse Bay isnt over.

Each story posted on this subject at petoskeynews.com has drawn scrutiny from readers in the comment section. The bottom line is we have a serious environmental issue that threatens our greatest resource  water quality. And it needs to be addressed.

We suggest that those interested in the cleanup effort arm themselves with knowledge and follow the process closely.

Heres a brief rundown of what we know so far:

CMS, a former partner in the upscale Bay Harbor resort, is responsible for controlling seepage of high-pH, caustic leachate found in recent years along parts of the resorts Little Traverse Bay shoreline and at nearby East Park. Leachate is created when water flows through cement kiln dust, a waste product from the cement plant which once operated along the corridor. Portions of Bay Harbor and East Park were developed over deposits of this dust.

CMS has installed collection lines in some shoreline areas to capture it. Collected seepage is treated to bring it to a safer pH range and trucked off site for disposal. Currently, seepage is sent to an injection well near Johannesburg and a wastewater treatment plant in Grand Traverse County.

The proposed Antrim County well would allow for better cost control than paying for disposal at the current sites operated by outside parties.

We learned on Monday, March 24, that the group would like to cut costs further by locating a seepage treatment facility as close as possible and the search for a local disposal option is far from over.

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality permit .
Decision Reached on Underground Injection Well near Alba
http://www.michigan.gov/deq/0,1607,7-135--185103--,00.html

The Environmental Protection Agency permit.
Beeland Group LLC Site in Alba, Michigan
http://www.epa.gov/region5/water/uic/beeland.htm


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## bucko12pt

I was on the Bay Harbor jobsite, probably an average of 3 times per week, while the kiln dust was being moved. DEQ personell were on the jobsite constantly and the contractors were instructed by them, where to place the materials. What is interesting to me, is the same materials sat, virtually on the shoreline, for probably 50 years or more and it was never an issue until the DEQ determined it should be buried. 

If you know how the project is laid out, the kiln dust was stockpiled where the super expensive homes are built, on the peninsula between the inner harbor area and Little Traverse Bay, virtually on the shoreline of the bay.It was stockpiled along the shoreline as high as 90' in some areas.

I've seen where the leachate is entering and not to minimize the problem, but $ 87 million to clean it up seems a little extreme. IMHO. Not to say it should be left to leach into the bay but, "the solution to pollution is dillution".

Also, are they creating another problem by putting the stuff down a disposal well and do we get to blame the Granhholm administration in 10 years for creating that problem?

Every other cement plant on the great lakes is disposing of their kiln dust 
in their quarries, all of which are on the shores of one of the lakes. Right or wrong, who knows?

Also interesting to note that CMS was long gone from this project before this problem was created. Were they dragged back in so we the taxpayers of Michigan could ultimately pay the cleanup bill?

Lot's of interesting happenings in this situation.

My $ .02 FWIW


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## Hamilton Reef

Group files suit against DEQ over Alba well

ALBA -- Opponents of a deep-injection wastewater well filed suit to block project permits after a state official rejected their appeal.

Antrim County Prosecutor Charles Koop said the county and township continue to oppose the well as a "poorly thought-out cure" to contamination problems at the posh resort on Lake Michigan.

"This is all about people wanting to play golf at Bay Harbor, and not properly cleaning it up before they put the golf course there," Koop said. "They want to dispose of the contamination on the cheap."

http://www.record-eagle.com/local/local_story_222094531.html


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## Hamilton Reef

Editorial: Bay Harbor still our problem

Now that a federal appeals board has rejected an effort by Antrim County residents to block the disposal there of contaminated leachate from a luxury resort in Petoskey, a bigger question looms: How long is it going to take to find a local solution to what has become a northern Michigan problem?

All this began, of course, with the Engler administration's decision to reclassify the CKD and allow it to stay on-site. It's a decision the entire region is still paying for -- with no end in sight.

http://www.record-eagle.com/opinion/local_story_286093815.html


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## Hamilton Reef

Opponents of Alba injection well file suit against Beeland Group, LLC

http://www.petoskeynews.com/articles/2008/11/10/news/doc491840681d06d397942753.txt

11/10/08 By Christina Rohn News-Review Staff Writer

ALBA  After having two of their appeals denied by the Environmental Protection Agency, opponents of the injection well in Alba have taken action through the court system as an alternative route to halt the project.

On Oct. 30, Star Township, Antrim County, Friends of the Jordan River Watershed and mineral owners Rhonda Lee OConnell, Cheryl Darrah and Robert Massey Jr. filed a lawsuit in 13th Circuit Court against Beeland Group, LLC, a subsidiary of CMS Energy that applied for the injection well.

Weve been nice, but we always felt we would eventually have to go this route, said Dr. John Richter, president of Friends of the Jordan and co-chair of the POWER (Protect Our Water and Environmental Resources) Coalition. You have to go through the appeals process first before it can be ripe for a lawsuit. We think we have a very strong case  weve been prepared to do this for a long time.

Tim Petrosky, CMS area manager, said this action is no surprise to his company.


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## Hamilton Reef

Experts: Resort cleanup won't solve problem

TRAVERSE CITY -- A $100 million-plus pollution cleanup at Bay Harbor near Petoskey will control but not solve the luxury resort's contaminated water problem.

As much as $140 million is expected to be spent on the cleanup, said Tim Petrosky, CMS area manager.

http://www.record-eagle.com/local/local_story_013094145.html


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## 22 Chuck

Before this is all done costs of cleanup will be 150 million or MORE and taxpayers will pay most of it-if it ever gets anywhere near 'done'.


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## Hamilton Reef

See if this raises any eyebrows or the anger level. The big money network can only prolong the cover up until the truth comes out.

Bulldozed: Coast Guard investigation unearths questions of toxic waste dumping
http://www.northernexpress.com/editorial/features.asp?id=3790


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## BioGuruCMU1123

So i dont get it, theres obviously a leak within the state of Michigan and we have good intentions to collect the "bad water". Ok, all fine and dandy but then we send the contaminated water over to Africa? What is the matter with this picture? No wonder why Africa is disease stricken... Unless there is another Johannesburg they are talking about?


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## swampbuck

Johannesburg is north east of gaylord in elk country.


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## BioGuruCMU1123

hmmm.. well there ya go my argument is suppressed then... :lol:


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## DoubleDropTineTrouble

Hamilton Reef said:


> See if this raises any eyebrows or the anger level. The big money network can only prolong the cover up until the truth comes out.
> 
> Bulldozed: Coast Guard investigation unearths questions of toxic waste dumping
> http://www.northernexpress.com/editorial/features.asp?id=3790


 
Thanks for posting the article. 

The cover-ups and bad business practices that went into making this dream world for the wealthy will eventually come to the forefront. As a former resident of petoskey, i know there are a lot of mixed feelings about bay harbor. 


another interesting read...

http://www.asbwpa.org/Bay Harbor.pdf


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## BioGuruCMU1123

^ like the article.
it seems like we need to find a better way to manage this problem. Removing the kiln dust from the ground would cause a bigger problem than leaving it there. Its a catch 22 as of right now... we just need a huge vacuum


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## Hamilton Reef

History will remember the four henchmen responsible for Bay Harbor, Dave Johnson, John Engler, Russ Harding, and KL Cool.


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## michi1

Hamilton Reef said:


> History will remember the four henchmen responsible for Bay Harbor, Dave Johnson, John Engler, Russ Harding, and KL Cool.


 And what political party held the office of chief law enforcement in this state at the time that property was being developed, the Democrats , with Attorney General Frank Kelley , followed by a failed actress , Ms " We'll blow you away " Granholm.


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