Sewage conversion: A judge rules that the county improperly issued a permit before sufficient environmental reviews.
By John Dodge, The Olympian, 6/27/1996, The Olympian
A Thurston County Superior Court judge has revoked a county permit granted last year to a company that wants to convert sewage sludge to compost at a Violet Prairie turf farm near Rochester.
Judge Christine Pomeroy ruled last week that the county commissioners issued the permit to South Sound Soils improperly, failing to conduct a sufficient environmental review of the controversial project.
The ruling was viewed as a major victory of project opponents who fear the compost could contaminate groundwater that supplies drinking water to the south county area.
"It's a shame we had to spend more than $20,000 and three years of our time just to have the county do what it is supposed to do," said Nancy Sweeney of the Thurston County Citizens Planning Association, the group that filed the lawsuit claiming the project lacked proper environmental review.
In her order, Pomeroy said the county should "reconsider whether to issue permit after a new review process is complete."
One of the things required in the new project review is an on-site geological study to determine if the groundwater is adequately protected from pollution.
At full production, South Sound Soils would mix 100 tons of treated sewage sludge and yard waste daily to apply on a 33-acre turf farm at 4400 163rd Ave. S.W, between Rochester and Tenino.
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