Photo by Warren Scott Members of Friends of Cross Creek held a press conference Monday to announce their formation and encourage others to join them in their opposition to the proposed reopening of the Crossridge Landfill. The group joins several public boards in protesting the move, citing concerns about pollution and other negative effects.

STEUBENVILLE — A citizens group called the Friends of Cross Creek has joined several public boards in protesting the proposed reopening of the Crossridge Landfill on Fernwood Road.

At a press conference Monday held at Leonardo’s Coffeehouse on Fourth Street, spokesperson Bekah Hawrot Weigel said the group has secured nonprofit status so it can accept financial support in its efforts to block plans by a New York company to acquire and reopen the landfill.

“This is a big ordeal we’re taking on and one reason we established a nonprofit organization was so we can accept donations,” she said.

Greenway Reclamation of Garden City, N.Y., has approached the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency about reopening the landfill and pursuing court-ordered environmental cleanups there in exchange for being allowed to accept a large amount of out-of-state waste.

The OEPA has indicated it would address longstanding environmental issues, including the past pumping of leachate, contaminated water from the landfill, from a hill above Cross Creek.

But Hawrot Weigel and other members of the group are concerned reopening the landfill will result in more environmental problems, greatly impacting the quality of life and potential for development in the county.

They point to odor complaints that arose when the landfill, which is located off of county Road 26 in Cross Creek Township, was open 10 years ago and from the Apex Landfill in Amsterdam.

“Our health, environment and quality of life in Jefferson County will undoubtedly be affected by any new landfill activity. The smell alone can impact up to a 10-mile radius,” said Weigel.

She and others expressed concern the project will be fast-tracked by the OEPA, with little or no opportunity for public input.

Weigel said OEPA officials have said they and Greenway are in talks about the project, but no permit has been submitted by the company.

Officials with the JB Green Team said the board, which is the solid waste authority for Jefferson and Belmont counties, can’t take action until Greenway has exercised its legal right to apply for a permit.

The Jefferson County County Commission and Board of Health, Steubenville and Wintersville councils and the Jefferson County Airport Authority, which oversees the airport near the landfill’s site, have taken official stances against its reopening.

The Jefferson County Port Authority also has opposed the move while exploring purchasing the land itself for potential use for development and pursuing grants to perform the cleanups.

Angela Mastros, president of Friends of Cross Creek, said the citizens group also represents a large cross-section of the community.

“It’s not just Cross Creek because it (the landfill) affects all of Steubenville,” she said.

Kim Bates Bozich, the group’s vice president, said the group has established a Facebook page, recruited local business owners to submit letters against the landfill and hired an attorney to advise it in its best course of action.

Tony Morelli was among residents who turned out to support the organization.

He said he lived near the Crossridge Landfill when it opened and it had been “a nightmare since Day 1” because of odors emanating from the site and from train cars that carried waste there.

“We need to do more than put signs up saying ‘No landfill,'” Morelli said.