Home Depot and Leeward saved from penalty—for now

By TOM KANE

INDIAN ORCHARD, PA — The Wayne Conservation District and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission will not take any immediate enforcement measures against Home Depot and the Leeward Company of Honesdale.

On August 8 during a strong downpour, storm water runoff washed muddy waters off the side of an exposed hill at the Home Depot construction site on Route 6 and inundated an unnamed tributary of Holbert Creek. The muddy waters then flowed into the creek and the nearby Lackawaxen River.

“We may decide to take some actions later but we are not doing that now,” said David Mitchell, resource environmentalist for the conservation district. A similar position is being taken by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

“We are looking for the companies to exercise voluntary compliance,” Mitchell said.

A meeting was held on Wednesday, August 17 with the Wayne Conservation District; representatives of R.L. Spencer, the major contractor; and the Leeward Company, the subcontractor doing the actual work; along with Leeward’s engineers and geologists.

“We discussed methods to achieve stability at the site and getting it under control,” Mitchell said. “We need to study the site more.”

Leeward has installed matting that will control any erosion. “The matting helps vegetation to grow,” said Anthony Strazzella, project manager for the R.L. Spencer Company. “We do not anticipate any enforcement actions being taken,” he said.

Fish and Boat Commission is examining waterways

Officer David Kaneski of the Fish and Boat Commission, the other environmental regulatory agency concerned about the possible pollution, would not comment on any enforcement actions.

“We are not concerned with the site but with the waterways affected by the site,” Kaneski said. “There’s an open investigation going on now and we can’t comment.”

Kaneski said: “If sediment pollution is found in the water- ways, enforcement measures will be taken. It is being investigated now.”

Sediment affects aquatic life and insects and smothers the food chain, causing fish to seek out other waterways.

“The Lackawaxen River contains trout, bass, minnows, walleyes and even some muskellunge,” Kaneski said. “The adult fish are only indirectly affected by this kind of pollution, if it has occurred.”

Kanesksi said that he was not sure if sediment pollution had reached the Delaware River.

“If environmental laws have been broken, criminal charges could be made against the company and/or individuals,” Kaneski said.

Monitoring is continuous on a daily basis, he said. The conservation district’s investigation is civil, the Fish and Boat’s investigation is criminal, he said.

Leeward and the past Wal Mart construction

In February of 1998, a similar event occurred on the same hill during the construction of Wal Mart, located adjacent to the Home Depot site. At the time, the Department of Environmental Protection ordered Leeward to cease moving earth and correct the storm water run off that was polluting area streams and cited 18 infractions at the site.

The current infraction at Home Depot, if any is declared, will be a third degree misdemeanor—the lowest degree. The fine could be from $500 to $5,000 and prison time could be leveled, Kaneski said.

Representatives of the Leeward Company did not return two phone calls.