A resolution to reclassify two properties to immediate priority sewer status was considered at our county council’s June 14 meeting. Having originally been classified at a lower priority in 2006, and with concern for a possible delay of up to 2 more years, council president Chuck Callahan made this request of county attorney Patrick Thomas, “Explain to us what’s happening here. Dig into the weeds with me.”
This process can be complicated. Two properties on the Matthewstown Rd. subdivision, a development of 200 homes previously classified as S2 would move to S1, immediate priority. This requires an amendment to our comprehensive water and sewer plan. There are “lots of hoops to go through,” but Resolution 331 will now go to the planning commission, and assuming approval, return to the council for a vote.
Our county’s population, currently 37,502, is up around 3,700 since 2000; and the Maryland Department of Planning has forecast population growth of 2,000 for Talbot County by 2030. With the addition of 200 homes at the Gannon Farms development, we can expect a modest increase in our population of around 440.
And our next decade? Gannon Farms will be contributing 200 homes. Poplar Hill on Oxford Rd. will add 439; and Lakeside anticipates building 2,501 homes. A total of 3,140 homes translates to population growth of around 6,900.
5,500 from Lakeside alone would be a level of population growth never before experienced in Talbot County – and all the more reason for environmental concerns in a county with over 600 miles of shoreline.
On May 27 a group of Talbot County residents joined the nonprofit Talbot Integrity Project to file suit against the Maryland Department of the Environment. This complaint contends that construction for the connection of 120 Lakeside homes to Trappe’s outdated wastewater treatment plant should not continue without our Talbot County Planning Commission’s approval.
The planning commission’s approval is required for approval of resolutions by our county council. Our public works advisory board voted unanimously against Lakeside, but Resolution 281 was initially approved by the planning commission and passed by the council.
A public hearing was also required, and a lawsuit would be filed before a hearing was be granted five months later. The data submitted on October 12, 2021 included transcripts from past county meetings, an independent wastewater treatment plant inspection report, findings of environmental organizations, and reminders of Maryland code.
Witnesses were granted more than three minutes to speak; but responses from the council included questions concerning veracity, an assertion that the county had no authority over the town of Trappe, and a suggestion that any wastewater treatment system “passing muster” would be sufficient.
Maryland Environmental Code requires counties to be in charge of planning for development. State agencies and others might assist; but this responsibility is assigned to counties, with jurisdiction over towns and villages. And our comprehensive plan requires “the state’s most recent standard” of wastewater treatment for new development.
Following the public hearings our planning commission rescinded its approval of Resolution 281.
In a March 14 interview council president Chuck Callahan suggested, “If we’d have been a bit more proactive, we could have resolved all of this 3-4 years ago…The environmental community should have been more proactive. They’ve been doing their own thing, so there’s a little bit of blame on the other side for not doing their homework.”
The county wasn’t aware of issues regarding the performance of Trappe’s aging wastewater treatment plant when Resolution 281 was approved, but the shortcomings of this aging plant have since become clear. Environmentalists have also offered testimony and public comments at council meetings and hearings, but were not invited to participate in the council’s work session.
ShoreRivers is testing water samples regularly. Swimming remains restricted in 8 locations around our Chesapeake Bay – and those locations include the Choptank River and Trappe Landing, a stone’s throw from the Lakeside development.
In order for Lakeside’s first 120 homes to be connected to Trappe’s underperforming plant in compliance, council member Laura Price had introduced a resolution requiring our current state standard, Enhanced Nutrient Removal (ENR), at Trappe’s plant, possibly with the assistance of modular wastewater treatment until either the development’s spray wastewater plant could be completed or Trappe’s plant upgraded. This was not approved,
We heard a suggestion that modular units on trucks would dump wastewater into manholes. Curiously, we had also heard at the public hearing that Trappe’s wastewater treatment is negatively impacted in that manner by rainwater.
MDE has requested guidance from our county, but turned down an opportunity to find a solution outside of court. Our courts will surely move us in the right direction again.
Talbot County Council Vice President Pete Lesher recently reminded us that our comprehensive plan is being revised, and “this is a time to be paying attention.” A vision of where we’re going is fundamental to a positive outcome.
The June 14 meeting was productive.The county’s ethics code will move to a “third reader” for consideration of updates to comply with state standards. Resolution 328 will allow amendments introduced by the county to be submitted on any legislative day. Habitat Choptank will receive a grant for a renovation on Locust Lane, and BAAM will receive assistance in the construction of a new academic center. The description of country clubs for zoning purposes and amendments concerning piers and related structures will also be considered, as will a resolution to raise county council salaries from $14,400 to $25,000.
That will be voted upon at a public hearing in July, and the meeting adjourned in a timely manner at 7:41 pm.
Carol Voyles is a graphic designer/illustrator who retired to the Eastern Shore and became interested in politics. She serves as communications chair for the Talbot County Democratic Forum and lives in Easton.
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