Hearing Before Oconee County Board of Commissioners On Tuesday Only First Step For Recycling Facility

If the Bernard Garrett family gets a favorable vote from the Board of Commissioners after Tuesday night’s public hearing on its request for a permit for a materials recovery facility on Dials Mill Road, it will have passed a first hurdle in getting a state of Georgia permit for the facility.

Before the state would issue its permit, it would hold another hearing where the public could once again state its support or voice its opposition to the proposed plan.

The permitting process with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division probably would last about six to eight months, according to Murray Griffin, president of Atlantic Coast Consulting, who is serving as an adviser to the Garretts as they move forward with plans for the materials recovery facility (MRF).

The Garretts would have to submit a much more detailed plan for the proposed facility than they have submitted so far, Griffin said, spelling out plant operations and design, including the location of equipment to be used.

Public scrutiny is an inherent part of the process, he said, and the public could offer comment on the proposal as it was being reviewed. A public hearing would be automatic, rather than something that the public would have to request, according to Griffin.

But the Garretts first need a positive vote from at least three of the five Oconee County Commissioners on Tuesday night.

The BOC meeting has been moved from the Commission meeting room to the much larger Courtroom 1 on the third floor of the courthouse in anticipation of a large turnout, County Clerk Jane Greathouse announced on Friday afternoon. The meeting will start at 7 p.m.

For more on this story, go to Oconee County Observations.

See also:

• Petition Against Proposed Dials Mill Road Recycling Facility Circulates
• Dials Mill Road Special Use Permit Decision Could Have Wider Effects
• Garretts Claim Their Special Use And Variance Requests Are Consistent With Their Oconee County Agricultural History
• Dials Mill Resident Asks Commissioners to Oppose Recycling Center
• Oconee County Planning Commission Recommends Materials Recovery Facility To Board of Commissioners
• Oconee County Planning Staff Does Not Recommend Approval Of Permit For Recycling Facility