Times Editor
Reports are favorable on the state required long-term-care water quality monitoring for the long-closed Union County Central Landfill, located west of Lake Butler, near Lulu.
The landfill was closed in 1997 but the state of Florida mandates a 20-year minimum program of monitoring to ensure there is no leakage of dangerous contaminants from the landfill contents. The 20-year period actually expired in 2017, but the state has required that the testing be extended. The required permit renewal is set for this year and the county hopes to be given a clean bill of health on the site and to be able to thus stop the semi-annual checks.
Jones-Edmunds & Associates has been conducting the ground water quality monitoring and Tim Cully came to make a presentation to the Union County Board of Commissioners at their Dec. 27 meeting about the results of the latest tests and entering into a new agreement for the checking process should the state require additional testing in the future.
The services required include the analysis of water sample from 10 water monitoring wells as well as the monitoring of surface water at two adjacent wetland areas on a semi-annual basis. Water depth in the wells is also checked so that groundwater contour maps may be kept current. Once the water samples have been collected, they are sent to an outside laboratory subcontracted by Jones Edmunds. Once the lab reports are received, the company prepares and submits reports to both the Florida DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) and the county in the proper format within the required
deadlines. Contingencies, such as testing that must be redone due to problems such as sampling issues, are included in the fee.
All of the most recent ground (wells) and surface (wetlands) water checks have come back within accepted ground water parameters, with minimal to zero amounts of the chemicals/substances monitored for. Sully said that this had been the case for the past several years, with consistent decreases in the tested for substances. He said that the landfill was in good shape and presented no danger at all to the health and welfare of residents. The most recent results are from the October sampling of the site.
The contract submitted to the county will cover the period from Oct. 30, 2021 until Sept. 30, 2022. The cost to the county for these services – two testing sessions – will be no more than $22,200. This includes $19,900 for the monitoring and reports of the ground water, $1,300 for the laboratory analysis and $1,000 for any contingencies that may arise, such as the need to repeat tests.
Commission Chairman Jimmy Tallman asked, first, if the amount was budgeted for and Union County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Kellie Hendricks Rhoades said that she would have to check but that she believed it was. Tallman then asked Cully about the possibility of finalizing the testing and getting an “all clear” rating for the state – eliminating the expense to the county. Sully said he saw no reason that the FDEP would not sign off on the cessation of testing but said it would have to be requested before the permit renewal date on Feb. 11, 2022. He said he would assist in the application for closure as needed. If FDEP requires that the permit be renewed for at least an additional two years.
In other action the board heard a report from County Coordinator Jimmy Williams concerning Union County Emergency Medical Services. Williams said that the staffing issues that had plagued EMS for the past several years were nearly solved, with only a single position left to be filled to enable the county to have two units available for serving residents at all times and a third unit that would be available for use as a medical transport for Department of Corrections and Lake Butler Hospital – both of which can be an income source to the county.
Williams said that talks with the prison system have been productive and he sees no problem with the transports for those facilities. He also presented the commissioners with a proposed agreement, formulated by himself and EMS Director Toby Witt, between the county and Lake Butler Hospital for EMS to make interfacility transport of patients.
Under the proposed agreement, all inter-facility transport would be routed through the county 911 communication center and would not be possible unless the county had at least one unit free for use in serving county residents. If a unit is available, it would proceed directly to the hospital upon receiving the 911 call. The attending paramedic would obtain the name of the referring and accepting physicians, as well as all pertinent paperwork before leaving the hospital. UCEMS will bill the patient’s insurance, or the patient themselves if they are uninsured. In the case of non-payment, after the county has exhausted all of its options to obtain payment, the hospital (LBH) will be billed a flat fee of $800 for the transport. If both the county and the hospital agree to these terms the county would be ensured getting paid for the provided service, which, Williams said, could amount to more than $20,000 per year in income to the county, based on previous record involving past transfer numbers.
The board also approved the lease of the county owned building located at 625 E. Main St. to Perez RPM Enterprises for use in the provision of WIC services to county residents. The period of the lease will run from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023. Payments of $665 per month will be paid to the county, for a total lease amount of $7,980. The tenant will be required to maintain $500,000 liability insurance in the property for the term of the lease to protect the county’s interest in the property.
