President’s Message – Jay Martin
As I sit here to share some news and thoughts with you it is snowing, for real, making it feel like an appropriate time to write a winter newsletter.
The Steering Committee has continued to monitor issues we feel require our attention. Some of these could have a positive impact on the Nanticoke watershed, while others could pose a threat to its health.
The Neighborhood Action Group (NAG) in Hebron, MD, continues to be engaged in a legal battle over the DAF (Dissolved Air Flotation) material storage tank on Porter Mill Road. Thanks to you, our members, we were able to help the group with their mounting legal expenses by sending a check for $2000. Lynette Kenney responded with a kind note (see excerpt below). She and her husband Dave own The Hardware Store in Mardela and have led NAG in their opposition to the storage tank.
"Dear Friends of the Nanticoke River,
The Neighborhood Action Group is indebted to you for all your support in our legal effort to have the 3-million-gallon DAF storage tank removed from the site on Porter Mill Rd. You have been true Friends. It is hard to believe that come May 2022 we will have been in this fight for 3 years. Your organization came beside us early, attending County Council meetings, spending innumerable hours educating yourselves, coordinating and preparing for public comment opportunities, and not in the least has been your financial support. We can’t express the appreciation we have for your contributions for our legal defense. … Thank you for standing with us, beside us, and in many cases, leading the charge.
Sincerely, The Neighborhood Action Group "
Two issues related to the NAG efforts are featured in this newsletter:
Valley Proteins, located in Linkwood, MD, produces rendering waste (DAF material). Wicomico County has proposed Zoning Legislation for DAF Material Storage Tanks. The Friends’ Steering Committee is planning to meet with board members of the Wicomico County Farm Bureau to gain an understanding of their concerns and approach to these issues. We are aware we may not be on the same page, but we do know we are in the same book.
In Delaware, the Sussex County Council is considering making changes to its Buffer Ordinance to help protect wetlands and waterways. Parts of the proposal will be an improvement over current regulations, but other portions we find unacceptable. See below for more information and how you can help encourage them to adopt meaningful legislation.
Also in DE, Bioenergy Devco, a global leader in the use of anaerobic digestion to address the enormous problem of poultry waste, is building a facility in Seaford. Anaerobic digestion will convert poultry processing waste to methane and compost.
Another similar measure, being proposed in Wicomico County, is the conversion of organic waste to biochar, which has several beneficial uses.
Read on for more on these and other items of importance to the health of the Nanticoke River.
Onward,
Jay
Zoning Legislation for DAF material storage tanks
The Wicomico County Planning Commission has yet to submit its formal proposal for zoning restrictions for storage tanks such as the 3-million-gallon one in Hebron, MD, but its members have voted to require agricultural zoning without restrictions on access roads.
The matter will go soon for discussion to the County Council, which had urged industrial zoning. The Friends would like to see alternative measures be required for handling poultry rendering waste, such as anaerobic digestion as discussed below.
Valley Proteins rendering facility held accountable
Valley Proteins is an organic waste rendering plant in Linkwood, MD. Its byproduct (DAF material) is stored in large tanks and spread on farms (see above).
Valley Proteins has caused serious harm to the Transquaking River, a Fishing Bay tributary. Its high-nutrient waste discharges cause Fishing Bay to receive a D or an F each year on the Nanticoke Creekwatchers’ Report Card. The facility also has polluted groundwater with its leaking storage units, and its diversion of DAF material to farmland is not adequately reported or monitored.
The plant is now in legal jeopardy. In November, the Friends joined approximately 100 concerned citizens and neighbors in testifying at a public hearing on the plant’s
water discharge permit renewal, which proposed to increase discharges fourfold. In December, the facility was cited with numerous violations by the MD Department of the Environment (MDE) and was briefly shut down. Finally, on February 2, MDE Secretary Ben Grumbles and Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh filed a complaint in the Circuit Court for Dorchester County against Valley Proteins. The complaint “seeks … injunctive relief and civil penalties for violations of Maryland’s environmental laws and regulations.” Valley Proteins has repeatedly exceeded its permit limitations for 20 years. Between April 2019 and October 2021 they had 40 effluent violations alone reported. Yet the complaint was not filed until drone video footage of their tanker trucks dumping waste into overflowing lagoons was made public by ShoreRivers, an Eastern Shore waterways advocacy group.
Clearly, Valley Proteins felt immune to regulation by MDE. That agency took little action until it was forced to respond to citizen reports. Unfortunately, the plant has obtained a consent order allowing it to send its waste to the Hurlock wastewater treatment plant, so the removal of pollution from the Transquaking River will threaten Marshyhope Creek, a Nanticoke River tributary. The Friends have requested a public hearing on Hurlock’s discharge request.
Sussex County wetland/waterway buffer ordinance
The Sussex County Council is considering changes to its Buffer Ordinance to protect wetlands and other water resources. The Nanticoke River receives a substantial
amount of nutrient and sediment pollution from the Delaware portion, and forested buffers between waterways and developments are essential in limiting inputs and maintaining vital habitat for fish and wildlife.
The Friends strongly supported the development of the ordinance, but new changes could potentially make the situation worse. For example, developers would be allowed to cut down all trees in the buffer on a development property before they apply for a permit. After application, they would have the option to plant grass in the buffer instead of trees. They could also “trade” buffer set-asides on other properties.
A follow-up public hearing of the Council seeking comments from citizens was scheduled for Feb. 22nd. See the FNR website for more information on this issue.
Wicomico County Water and Sewer
Failing septic tanks plague many areas of the county and contribute to the pollution of our waterways and groundwater. Wicomico County is considering revising its Water and Sewer plan to extend these utilities to approximately 12 areas in the County. The Friends are monitoring the proposal and will be working to be sure the final plan targets areas most in need of this service and provides projects that result in meaningful improvement in water quality.
Alternative methods for treating poultry and other organic waste
The Friends have supported the proposal by Bioenergy Devco to build an anaerobic digester near Seaford, DE. The facility will be able to accept waste from poultry processers and convert it to methane and compost. This process would divert DAF material from land application and reduce pollution to waterways. The proposal has met with opposition from Food & Water Watch, a D.C. - based environmental group, which has openly stated its intent to “bring down big chicken”.
The Friends have long supported well-managed poultry operation on the Shore as a key economic driver that sustains local farmers and provides affordable food to many. But problems still exist with large-scale meat production, and we believe this bioenergy facility is a step to reduce those problems. This plant will be sited at the location of a large poultry waste composting facility and will convert poultry processing waste (blood, guts, beaks. etc.) into a dry, odorless, and pathogen-free product that can be easily shipped. It will also produce natural gas, which will help to reduce dependence on fossil fuel and on natural gas from fracking. And a study has shown that processes such as anaerobic digestion of food byproducts result in lower greenhouse gas emissions than traditional disposal methods. Anaerobic digestion appears to be a promising means for dealing with poultry and other waste.
Another method we are investigating is conversion of poultry litter or DAF waste to biochar. Earthcare LLC has proposed to build a facility on Owens Branch Rd. next to the Wicomico County landfill. Biochar is a material that can remediate degraded soils and capture heavy metals, among other uses. The Friends are working to educate ourselves on this technology and anticipating a dialogue with representatives from both Earthcare and the local community concerning emissions, waste storage, siting, and other concerns.
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