Not talking trash

Encampment Mayor Greg Salisbury expressed frustration at what he saw as lack of communication between the municipality and the Upper Platte River Solid Waste Disposal District (UPRSWDD) during the Encampment Town Council meeting on July 12 at Encampment Town Hall. The town council also heard about a line break at the Grand Encampment Museum (GEM) and from the Wyoming Association of Rural Water Systems.

Salisbury’s frustration with the landfill district came about during an update on recent Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) violations at the Encampment facility. According to Craig Kopasz, of Engineering Associates, the most pressing violation was that of a downed fence along the border of the transfer station.

“The landfill has to have a perimeter fence around it. I talked with Katrina Nuhn, I talked to Randy (Raymer) and I think what’s going to transpire is the fence is going back into the same spot, it’s just going to be a lot more simple fence,” said Kopasz.

Kopasz then asked if the town had seen the Notice of Violation issued by the DEQ. Doreen Harvey, Encampment town clerk and treasurer, informed Kopasz that the town had not received any information about the violations.

“We have not had copies of any of it. We are shooting in the dark here,” said Harvey.

Kopasz informed the council that while it was the landfill district that was in violation, it was the town that would need to replace the fence that had been removed last fall.

“Who is supposed to fix the fence?” asked Salisbury.

“The town because they’re the ones that ripped it out,” Kopasz replied.

“They need, whoever it is, Randy (Raymer) or whoever, need to let us know—prior, way before this—that we need to put this thing in,” Salisbury said.

Kopasz informed Salisbury that as soon as he had received the Notice of Violation from the DEQ, he had been in contact with Department of Public Works employee Nuhn regarding the fence.

“I apologize, I didn’t know the (landfill) district hadn’t sent you the letter, but the time frame has always been clear and present to Katrina,” said Kopasz.

He also informed the council of the other two violations recorded by the DEQ. One violation was in regards to settlement in the trenches over the former landfill and, according to Kopasz, the landfill district would place more dirt in those areas and seed the area. Another violation had to do with the absence of locks on monitor wells.

In other business, the town was addressed by Kathy Weinsaft of the Wyoming Association of Rural Water Systems. Weinsaft was there to inform the council of upcoming training sessions for municipalities. According to Weinsaft, recent water issues in other areas have provided difficulty for other water systems throughout the country.

“This whole Flint, Mich. thing is just the gift that keeps on giving. Often, people that hear the news think that ‘Maybe, there’s lead in our water.’ We test for all of that. We keep track, but the training we give can help you answer some of those questions,” said Weinsaft. “I’d much rather see people feel confident in turning on their tap and drink their water then going down to the store and buying a bottle.”

The town also heard from Irene Archibald about a breakage in the service line for the GEM sewer system. Salisbury informed the council that, following a conversation with GEM Board President Mark Dunning, it appeared a tree root had separated the service line from the sewer main. According to Archibald, they had contacted Nuhn but at that time both parties were unsure if it was a blockage of the line or a break. It did not become apparent to GEM what the issue was until they had contacted a plumber in Laramie who had used a camera to inspect the line and the line had been exposed.

Archibald explained she was hoping the town could do something to prevent this same issue from happening in the future since the Town of Encampment technically owned the property that GEM was on. Both Salisbury and the council maintained that while the town technically owned the property, it was in the possession of GEM.

While the town agreed to pay the fees accrued by the museum in rectifying the current issue with the service line, they informed Archibald that they were hesitant to do so due to setting a precedent of the town maintaining service lines that were on private property.

With no other business to conduct, the Encampment Town Council adjourned following an executive session in which nothing was reported. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Encampment Town Council will be at 7 p.m. on Aug. 9 at Encampment Town Hall.