Several Box Elder County citizens want plans for the proposed new landfill in the West Hills area of White's Valley west of Tremonton put on hold.

According to Reggie Peterson, spokesman for the Safe Drinking Water Association, the group's main concern is that White's Valley is at least a partial source for water supplies in the Bothwell Pocket and that earthquakes and floods - which statistics show are common in the area - could contaminate the supply if the landfill is located where proposed.Peterson showed commissioners pictures of heavy flooding that occurred in 1980. Floods also occurred in 1948, 1962 and 1985. Peterson cited frequent seismic activity in the area as another possible problem. He said that a seismologist from the University of Utah predicts a 4 percent to 20 percent chance of an earthquake of 7.5 magnitude in the vicinity.

Commission Chairman James White told Peterson that, faced with the much publicized Oct. 9, 1993, deadline for a new landfill, he could see no benefit in putting plans on hold.

The Commission recently voted to void existing contracts with Envirofill Inc. and recommended the formation of a special service district to handle all aspects of landfill plans. Commissioners said that Cache, Davis, Weber, Salt Lake and Tooele counties in Utah, and Franklin County and Malad in Idaho have expressed interest in joining with Box Elder County but emphasized that no contracts have been signed.

Peterson asked for permission for his group to sponsor an independent on-site evaluation in White's Valley and asked for access to the locked monitoring wells dug during the initial stages of the permitting process.

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Commissioners agreed to access on condition that permission to enter the land be obtained from the Hunsakers, who own the land; that any tests or taking of samples be done by qualified professionals; and that engineer Lew Wangsgard of Envirofill Inc., which oversaw previous testing, be present. Peterson expects that testing initiated by his group will take four months.

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