At first glance, the recently-erected mechanism that sits just east of Northville Township s Ridge Wood Elementary School looks like something that just escaped from a futuristic science lab.
The device decked out with appendages you might find on the Mars rover is actually a hydrogen sulfide air-monitoring station that was placed near the school by Green For Life (GFL), the new owner of the Arbor Hills Landfill located in Salem Townsihp, less than a mile west of Ridge Wood.
The placement of the station is part of an agreement between Advanced Disposal Services (the former owner of the landfill) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency and in accordance with an access agreement with Northville Public Schools to help settle compliance violations the landfill s owners have committed over the past several years.
According to Herrmann s calculations, the annual fee cost the average township household $5.55 per month. I feel like, while it was definitely a campaign issue for the supervisor, clerk and treasurer and had gained traction with residents, we as a board had not heard from people who were very upset about this fee, Herrmann said. Before we rescind it, I feel we should make a concerted effort to study it and get feedback from our residents.
Abbo, who made elimination of the administrative tax a priority of his campaign for supervisor, acknowledged that while the fee is relatively small, these small amounts add up.