Freeholders urged to deny Marpal expansion

BY KAREN E. BOWES
Staff Writer

FREEHOLD - A local garbage transfer station has already ruined the neighborhood, according to residents, and now they want to make it worse.

About 40 people, mainly from Tinton Falls and the Lincroft section of Middletown, attended the Monmouth County Freeholders meeting Thursday night, speaking out against plans to expand Marpal's solid waste transfer station on Wayside Road, Tinton Falls.

Owners of Marpal are seeking to expand their business, allowing the amount of construction and demolition debris they receive each day to increase from 450 tons to 800 tons. Neighbors say the number of garbage trucks coming to and from the facility is already an unfair burden on the neighborhood. Increasing the daily tonnage and hours of operation would only exacerbate the problem.

"To approve this Marpal proposal would be a travesty of justice," Lincroft resident Barbara Thorpe said.

Thorpe has lived on Swimming River Road, or County Route 50, for 39 years, she said. The busy roadway, which has no sidewalks and is lined with large trees, curves sharply at times and is the main road to Marpal.

Thorpe described the street "like a turnpike in a residential neighborhood."

"This truck traffic threatens life and limb," she added.

Thorpe handed in photos of the facility which she said demonstrated Marpal's "relentless assault on the environment and quality of life."

Carol Baker, co-president of the Lincroft Village Green Association, spoke about the health risks of living near the facility. Citing data from the American Cancer Society and Environmental Protection Agency, Baker said ingesting diesel fumes can lead to a number of health problems, including childhood asthma.

"This road passes a middle school," Baker said.

While the Monmouth County Solid Waste Advisory Council has already approved Marpal's expansion, the Freeholders have final say on the matter. The borough of Tinton Falls has fought back by submitting a petition containing 800 signatures opposing the expansion, while Middletown has passed a resolution noting its strong opposition to the idea as well.

Many other neighbors also spoke at the meeting, including Brooklyn native Patricia Connor, who moved to the area over 20 years ago.

"I feel like I should move back to Brooklyn for some peace and quiet," Connor, of Lincroft, said. "My whole entire life, I've never attended a session like this. But I'm very concerned. I really think it's a matter of life and death."

Mrs. Connor's husband, Joseph Connor, also spoke.

"It's not uncommon for me to hear reverberations in my pipes, rattling my china and shaking my chandeliers, waking me up many times," he said.

Other objections included the possibility of diminished property values and safety concerns for pedestrians traveling along the road.

"It's hardly tolerable as it is," said Dean Duane, a Swimming River Road resident. "Nobody's exaggerating here.

"It's ludicrous," Duane added. "If you went out there, you'd probably laugh. That's how much traffic there is."

Duane suggested imposing a weight limit on trucks that use the road and also advising drivers to use Route 18 as an alternative route to the station.

Marpal General Manager Richard Maio read a statement, pointing out that in this type of business, "you are going to offend someone at sometime."

"I'm not an engineer. I'm not a traffic expert," Maio repeated several times, then told those present that "if and when we get approved," there will be extensive studies on the area, including traffic, environmental, air quality, noise and other types of studies.

He also noted that Marpal takes the trash not accepted at the county landfill.

"Monmouth County landfill doesn't want this kind of material," Maio said. "We get it out of the landfill."

Also of note, Middletown Mayor Thomas Hall sent a letter to the freeholders objecting to the expansion. Tinton Falls sent Borough Administrator W. Bryan Dempsey to the meeting for the same reason.