Judge rules in favor of mushroom factory

Mamakating planning board victory

By FRITZ MAYER

WURTSBORO, NY — The lawsuit filed against the Yukiguni Maitake Corporation was thrown out last week by a state judge.

Judge Robert A. Sackett ruled, “that the planning board identified the relevant areas of environmental concern and certainly took a hard look at them.” Josh Sommers, who is handling communications for the company, said the decision underscores the position of Yukiguni Maitake that all environmental concerns have been addressed.

At full build-out, the proposed factory will be 920,000 square feet, process 30 tons of mushrooms daily and draw 400,000 of gallons of water each day. The suit charged that in allowing the project to move forward, the planning board failed to adequately review environmental concerns. The judge recognized that experts on both sides disagreed about whether the water draw would have a negative impact. He also recognized that experts disagreed about whether the facility would have a negative impact on wildlife and the preservation of open space. But he wrote, “A consensus of experts is not required as long as the planning board’s determination is based on reliable expert advice and is reasonable.”

The judge also noted that the impact on the Basha Kill aquifer would be continually assessed through well monitoring. Because the property comes under the jurisdiction of the Delaware River Basin Commission, that agency would be involved in oversight of the water management systems at the plant.

His ruling, however, also said that the parties, who brought the suit, had legal standing in the matter. Patricia and Kevin Moore, who live next to the proposed site of the factory, and the Basha Kill Area Association (BKAA) brought the suit.

Paula Medley, BKAA president, said an appeal would be filed, based on the argument that not all of the environmental information was presented to the public before permits were issued. She said, for instance, that the plant’s water conservation plan is being drawn now and should have been presented to the public earlier in the process.