Elcon Files Appeal To Falls 'No' Vote

FALLS TOWNSHIP, PA — The company hoping to bring a hazardous waste treatment plant to Falls Township has filed an appeal in court after supervisors voted down the proposal.

The appeal, by Elcon Recycling Services, was filed in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas on Thursday.

The Falls Township Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on April 30 to deny Elcon's plans for a chemical and pharmaceutical waste treatment plant on the former site of U.S. Steel at the Keystone Industrial Port Complex.

The vote came after two hours of public comment at a meeting, during which no local residents spoke in favor of the plant.

In the appeal, the Israel-based company calls the supervisors' decision "arbitrary, capricious" and "an abuse of discretion."

The 40-page appeal details what Elcon says were scheduling difficulties with the Falls planning commission as it considered the plan and claims that Falls supervisors didn't provide a legal reason for denying its plan.

Elcon has been working since 2014 on its proposal, which was officially sent to the township in January. It is looking to build on a 23-acre parcel of land that would treat up to 193,000 tons of hazardous and pharmaceutical waste per year.

Elcon also is having to fight on the state level for approval of the plant, which critics have said poses a serious threat of air and water pollution.

Last month, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced its "intention to deny" Elcon's application on the state level. The department's decision-making period runs through July 15 and Elcon could submit changes that would ultimately win the board's approval.