For Immediate Release
Contact: Jeff Tittel, NJ Sierra Club, 609-558-9100
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Elcon no longer intends to proceed with its proposed facility in Falls Township, Bucks County and will be withdrawing all applications. DEP is therefore terminating its review of all applications and materials for their project.
“The Elcon mess is finally over. This is a huge win for environment and for the people who have continuously fought this hazardous waste facility for several years. This facility would have been disaster waiting to happen. The facility would have sent 600 toxic chemicals into Falls River, the Delaware River, and surrounding areas in New Jersey. Trucks carrying hazardous material would have been moving in or out of the site, risking the chance of an accident or spill. Stopping this project has protected the Basin and the drinking water for 6 million people. Elcon’s project was flawed and their application was deficient. They got the message once PA DEP denied them and finally withdrew their application,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “We have to remain vigilant, however because facilities like Elcon can move around and find another site.”
Elcon’s proposal included building on a 22-acre portion of a 33-acre property in the Keystone Industrial Port Complex. The facility has been expected to process 150,000 to 210,000 tons of chemical and pharmaceutical waste that would be transported to the facility every year.
“Today is a victory for our clean air, clean water, and against toxic waste. Elcon’s proposal was the wrong project in the wrong place at the wrong time. The facility would have turned industrial liquid waste from chemical and pharmaceutical companies into clean water. It would have been a dangerous facility that could have put people around the Delaware River at risk. Because of the potential of spills, accidents, and potential impact on public safety and the environment, was voted down by both Falls Township and the PA DEP,” said Tittel.
Falls Township officials also unanimously turned down the proposed Elcon hazardous waste treatment facility at a special meeting in April of last year.
“It’s critical that Elcon has given up. Because of public outpouring, both Falls Township and PA DEP denied to project and prevented a toxic nightmare for Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Elcon’s facility would have sent toxic chemicals through the air and into New Jersey communities. The waste from this facility would end up as vapor that we breathe in. When you burn hazardous waste like nail polish removers, pesticides and other toxic chemicals, you don’t get rid of it,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “The Delaware River and the drinking water for 6 million people in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Our rivers belong to all of us. This project was dangerous to our environment and communities and now has been finally stopped.”