Lawsuit Threatened Over Compost Plan

Jay Barrett/KMXT
More concerns over a planned composting site in Middle Bay were aired before the Kodiak City Council at its last meeting. The city has contracted with Peter Olsen of Quyanna Development Corporation to take the left over sludge from the sewage treatment plant off its hands. He plans to mix it with wood chips and make compost at property he’s leased in Middle Bay. It would be a larger version of the pilot project the city conducted at the treatment plant last year.
However, as soon as the contract was approved, residents of Middle Bay and others raised concerns about having the sludge in their back yards or so near salmon streams. Todd Hiner is one of them. He found three optional sites that he feels are better than Middle Bay.

— (Compost 1 54 sec “I think the best one is the borough … perfect, it’s already polluted.”)

Marilyn Gillmet has a farm in Middle Bay, which she fears could become contaminated by the sludge:

— (Compost 2 22 sec “You know, we should have been … not an idle threat, that is a fact.”)

In defense of his business and plan, Olsen said he is aware of all the statutory requirements surrounding such a project:

— (Compost 3 39 sec “I suspect we will be in compliance … I welcome the scrutiny.”)

The city needed to find a new way to dispose of the left over sludge at the water treatment plant because the Kodiak Island Borough will no longer allow it to be bailed and placed in the landfill.

###