Fouts accuses Hackel, Sterling Heights mayor of cover up at landfill

Warren Mayor Jim Fouts accused the mayor of neighboring Sterling Heights and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel of being a "pollution cover-up tag team" in what he called illegal dumping at the closed Freedom Hill landfill that damaged methane gas vents and trees.

Fouts, in a letter Tuesday to Sterling Heights Mayor Michael Taylor, asked whether dirt dumped at the closed landfill in Sterling Heights was a special favor and what financial arrangement was made with the contractor. He sent the letter to Taylor in response to Taylor's comments in the news media about Fouts on the issue. Fouts sent a copy of the letter to the Free Press and other media outlets.

He said in his opinion Taylor and Hackel are guilty of violating state regulations governing landfill sites and both are "derelict in your duties as elected officials."

► Related:Hackel scolds Warren mayor for Facebook post about 'scandal'

Last week, Fouts and Hackel traded barbs after Fouts posted a cryptic post on Facebook that vaguely talked about a "major environmental scandal" brewing in the county that "could be a mini version of what happened in Flint." The post prompted calls to the county from worried residents concerned about their drinking water and a news conference by Hackel who called Fouts' posts "appalling" and "inappropriate."

Hackel reassured residents their drinking water was safe. Fouts later revealed his concern involved what he called illegal dumping at the landfill at Freedom Hill County Park, which is county owned. He claimed 150,000 to 200,000 yards of excavating dirt was dumped at the site without permits, burying trees and 40 methane gas monitoring wells that he said allow methane gas to escape.

He said he remains concerned about leachate getting into the Red Run Drain, the Clinton River and Lake St. Clair; methane gas problems or explosions, and taxpayers footing the bill.

Taylor told the Free Press he was aware of the contents of Fouts' letter and reiterated several times that there "was no cover-up. I wasn't a part of a cover-up."

Taylor said Hackel contacted him the morning after Fouts' cryptic post to assure him there were no health concerns. Taylor said his main concern was water quality and while there are "issues at Freedom Hill that need to be addressed, it will be done." Taylor said he was aware work was going on there; that trucks were staging at the property, but he never authorized anything to be done at the site, adding that he doesn't have the authority for contractors to do work on county property.

The City of Sterling Heights issued a news release late Tuesday stating there are two closed landfills within and behind the park and that the city does not have jurisdiction over the park or the landfills, which are under a remediation action plan. It stated that on Feb. 16, the city issued a soil erosion permit for use by the county to level off parking areas. During the summer, county contractors began installing a berm behind Freedom Hill to screen headlights from amphitheater visitors using the adjoining parking lot.

It states the city was not a party to the work and that the landfills are under the jurisdiction of the South Macomb Disposal Authority, which is made up of five communities, including Warren.

"The remediation plan requires monthly reporting to numerous parties including the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ). The construction was noted in the monthly reporting this summer. In the reports, it clearly stated that trees and methane vents damaged by the construction would need to be repaired. Because of these reports, the SMDA and the MDEQ have been fully aware of the condition on the property since at least July of 2016," according to the Sterling Heights statement. "Aside from noting the required repair work, the monthly progress reports satisfied the requirements of the MDEQ's consent decree."

The consent decree was signed in 2005, according to Fouts' office.

Deputy County Executive Mark Deldin, who had not seen Fouts' letter to Taylor, said remediation work is being completed at the site with holes being plugged to the satisfaction of the civil engineer and that dirt will be shaved off the berm to the satisfaction of the landfill consultant.

He said Dan's Excavating, which dumped the dirt, is taking corrective action at no cost to the county or the communities in the disposal authority.

Deldin said the contractor brought clean fill from county road projects to the site at no cost to the county because the county was looking for ways to improve the parking situation. He said county officials told the contractor it would need soil erosion permits and whatever else was necessary, and it was was issued a permit from Sterling Heights. He said Dan's Excavating didn't know it was under the disposal authority, adding "we've learned it through this process."

"We weren't trying to circumvent anything," Deldin said.

When asked about the investigation Fouts mentioned, Deldin said "if he can't let this go, he can have anybody he wants to investigate."

Fouts said he would like to see environmental testing. He said he wants "a certified statement that this dirt is safe."

Fouts said the issue he is raising with Taylor and Hackel isn't political.

"Are they honest with the public?" Fouts said. "If I hadn't raised (the issue), they wouldn't be cleaning up this site."

Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter: @challreporter.