DUNMORE -- A landfill in Lackawanna County seeking to expand was cited by the Department of Environmental Protection for a second time. DEP officials say groundwater from the Keystone Sanitary Landfill leaked into a creek in Throop and Olyphant.
The leak happened back in October, and we first told you about it in November. We now have the details of the DEP's report. It involves the leak of leachate, the groundwater that flows through the landfill.
Eddy's Creek in Olyphant, a tributary of the Lackawanna River, runs through Throop and Olyphant. Folks in a neighborhood in Olyphant say they would notice if there was anything unusual about the normally calm creek.
Many of them were surprised to learn that leachate from the Keystone Sanitary Landfill leaked into the creek last fall.
"I'm thinking if it was a significant amount of water, we would have noticed it because it runs through my landlord's backyard," said Louis Hairston. "I didn't notice it. It wasn't a surprise because I didn't see anything different."
Keystone was cited last fall for another leachate leak in April of 2016.
We're just learning about the details of the October leak because DEP reports can take months to complete.
We spoke with a representative from Keystone Sanitary Landfill who says the leak was traced back to a cracked pipe that was fixed hours after the leak was discovered. But the DEP says within that amount of time, more than 7,000 gallons of leachate spilled.
What no one knows is how much leachate ended up in Eddy's Creek.
Landfill officials say they don't think it made it all the way to Olyphant, but neighbors say they are keeping a closer eye on the creek.
"Yes, I will pay more attention, me and my landlord. I'll explain to her so she can be on the watch, too."
DEP officials will now have to determine if there will be punishment for the citation. Officials at Keystone Landfill say they don't expect any punishment because the leak was fixed.
Landfill officials also say they don't expect this latest citation to hurt their chances of being granted an expansion.