Win-win
If there’s ever been an overused cliche, it’s “win-win.” You hear it tossed around so much that it’s more annoying than anything.
But there are some instances where it still holds true, such as news that officials with the state Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Conservation and Natural Resources plan to cover the gob pile in Mather with soil from the bottom of Duke Lake at the Ryerson Station State Park in Richhill Township.
Both projects are so important and vital to Greene County that it’s hard to tell which one residents should be happier about.
Mather residents had to be wondering if they’d ever be rid of the unsightly gob pile, left over from the Mather Mine which began operating in 1917 and was abandoned in 1964.
Situated near Third Street in Mather, nothing could grow on the 70-acre refuse pile, which is still burning in some parts.
“You get up there and it is like the surface of the moon,” said John Poister, DEP spokesman.
Angela McDonald, 17, of Mather said the gob pile has been a growing problem over the years.
“Mice and rats come down from that gob pile. And there’s holes up there that you can fall into and not get out. That gob pile is a big hazard,” said McDonald.
Part of the site had been reclaimed through an effort started by Greene County Industrial Development Authority in 2001, but it was halted several years later for lack of funding.
Plans are in the works to use the land possibly as a park area with perhaps a ball field or a soccer field. A local conservation group also wants to put in hiking trails and even a boat launch.
“So now instead of looking out over an ugly coal pile, this land will be made better through remediation. This is a huge project,” said Poister.
The news about Duke Lake was just as exciting. The lake was drawn down in 2005 after cracks and water seepage were discovered in its dam.
DCNR and Consol Energy announced a settlement last year that will result in the replacement of the dam.
Restoration of the lake is now in the permitting process. Poister said 250,000 cubic yards of soil from the lake bottom will be excavated, with the lake being eventually restored by the summer of 2017.
The lake, which was built in 1960, had been used by many visitors over the years for both fishing and swimming prior to its closing. Undoubtedly there will be many people happy to visit the lake again, once it’s reopened.
“This is great for taxpayers’ dollars to be utilized this way. Two wonderful projects for two communities that really deserve to have both of these projects completed,” said state Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Jefferson.
Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch, and taxpayers will be on the hook for about $3.6 million to complete the two projects.
The DEP awarded a nearly $1.6 million contract to reclaim the refuse pile, and another $2 million is expected to be spent on transporting the soil from Duke Lake to Mather.
But that’s money well spent in our books. Taxpayers will get two very important projects done at the same time, which is extremely rare these days.
Overall, it’s the true essence of a “win-win.”