LAKELAND — An industrial facility that recycles waste must restore five acres of wetlands, enclose areas at the plant likely to generate odors and change the way it processes waste, according to a letter from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
The letter from Kirk White, assistant deputy general counsel for the DEP, to Ron Noble, a lawyer for BS Ranch & Farm, details changes the facility must make if its owners want to avoid court.
"The Department views this effort as a final opportunity to avoid a third-party decision-maker," White wrote Jan. 19.
Noble wrote in a response Jan. 26 that the East Lakeland facility owners are pleased the DEP is willing to avoid a courtroom.
"Thank you for the Department's January 19, 2018 correspondence which sets forth framework and path forward for resolution of the three remaining permitting and compliance matters for the BS Ranch & Farm organic recycling facility located in Polk County, Florida," Noble wrote.
The DEP and the facility have been at odds for a year. The agency cited the facility in 2017 for violating its permit by creating odors.
BS Ranch & Farm recycles human waste, out-of-date foods and mulch. Complaints about the facility causing an odor began in early 2017.
Since then, county officials have filed a lawsuit to shut down the facility and have spent nearly $300,000 in attorney fees, expert witness fees and court-related hearings on the case. BS Ranch has countered with a lawsuit seeking to halt action by the County Commission that rescinded earlier approvals the company received that would have allowed it to continue.
In the letter from the DEP, White wrote that a minimum of 5.13 acres of wetland impacts have occurred.
"As discussed, BS Ranch would need to restore the impacted wetland areas back to original grades and allow them to revegetate," White wrote. "Further, monitoring reports would be required to demonstrate the areas had been restored and had revegetated to an extent similar in vegetative composition and density to what they had been prior to impact."
He continued that BS Ranch owners should submit a written plan to install enclosures for areas likely to generate odors.
"As indicated during Thursday's meeting, based upon the Department's experience, enclosures for those areas most likely to generate odors, with treatment of the enclosure gases prior to external ventilation tend to yield the most success," White wrote.
Noble responded that a written plan was a good idea, but said enclosures may be difficult.
"This Odor Control Plan will include and incorporate new facility modifications and odor control technology of which the Department is not currently aware," he wrote. "Although we appreciate the Department's suggestion regarding enclosure and collection and treatment of gases for areas that potentially generate odors, please understand we are not aware of any large-scale composting operations in the State of Florida that utilize enclosed buildings or other enclosures for operational/processing areas."