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As part of the remediation process, Arcadis, an Indianapolis firm, plans to cap off the Lakeland Disposal Superfund site near Claypool with dirt from a nearby site.
But because the project will destroy two acres of a wetland, the Environmental Protection Agency is requiring Arcadis to construct a 6.8-acre wetland elsewhere.
Thursday, Arcadis requested permission from the Kosciusko County Drainage Board to construct a wetland area adjacent to the Slone Adams drain and within 15 feet of the ditch. The area is near the intersection of CRs 450W and 525S.
The board approved the request, but Arcadis must meet Kosciusko County Surveyor Richard Kemper's recommendations.
His recommendations include:
• Berming, diking or other construction no closer than 35 feet perpendicular to the top of the ditch bank.
• Use of pipe for the culverts strong enough to carry heavy equipment loads.
• Pipes should not protrude beyond the stream water's edge at their outlets.
• No vegetation or trees planted within the 75-foot drainage easement.
• Debrushing and clearing of the north bank.
In addition, the board and Kemper assume no liability for damage of any structures associated with the project and assume no maintenance for the level of the streambed within the drain.
Also, the surveyor's office must be contacted before the project is started.
Ed Copeland, agent with Arcadis, said the project was submitted to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and the EPA for approval. He also said once the groundwater containment and landfill cover system are completed, the property may be deeded over to the county.
According to Times-Union stories from 1993, Lakeland Disposal was closed in 1978 because of improper dumping practices. The dump was later placed on the federal Superfund list for cleanup.
In another matter, the board approved Kemper's recommendations on a request to establish a maintenance fund for the Preston Miles drain.
A fund for the drain has never been established. Kemper said the county will maintain the drain up to the Kosciusko/Elkhart county line and Elkhart County will maintain the drain from there to Turkey Creek.
The cost is based on cleaning the drain, including an open arm. The size of the main drain is 8,050 feet and the arm is 1,100 feet. The cost also includes cleaning the drain approximately every five to six years and clearing brush every two to four years. The total watershed for the drain is 924 acres. The cost to the property owners will not appear on tax statements until spring 2003.
Work on the drain will begin in the fall.
The three rates include rates for agricultural land, residential property and industrial/commercial property. The rates are based on land use, not zoning. There is a $5 minimum assessment per tract.
The drainage board also gave Kemper permission to check the distance of a billboard from the Gay Easterday Robinson drain. The board approved the billboard to be as close as 40 feet, but if it is closer, the sign company - Bill Board Advertising Inc. - must move the sign.
A variance was originally approved for Dennis Nivision, North CR 800W, for the sign to be at a setback of 50 feet.
Members of the drainage board are chairwoman Avis Gunter, Donald Goon, Dorris Harrold, Maurice McDaniel and Eldon Watkins. They meet at 9:15 a.m. in the county courthouse, Warsaw, on the fourth Thursday of every month.
