County of Berks v. Allied Waste Industries Inc.

66 Pa. D. & C.4th 429, 2004 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 241
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Berks County
DecidedApril 30, 2004
Docketno. 03-14974
StatusPublished

This text of 66 Pa. D. & C.4th 429 (County of Berks v. Allied Waste Industries Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Berks County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
County of Berks v. Allied Waste Industries Inc., 66 Pa. D. & C.4th 429, 2004 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 241 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2004).

Opinion

LASH, J.,

— This matter comes to the court on defendants’ preliminary objections to plaintiff’s complaint. For reasons set forth herein, we sustain the preliminary objections, dismissing Counts I, II and IV of plaintiff’s complaint and requiring plaintiff to amend Count III of the complaint to conform to the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure.

Plaintiff, County of Berks, filed its complaint on December 9, 2003, alleging that defendants, Allied Waste Industries Inc., Browning-Ferris Inc., and New Morgan Landfill Company Inc., are in violation of the Solid Waste Management Act of 1980 (SWMA)1 (Count I), violation [431]*431of the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act of 1988 (Act 101)2 (Count IV), creating a public nuisance (Count III), and causing a diminution of property values (Count II). Plaintiff alleges that these claims arise as a result of the improper operation by defendants3 of the Conestoga Landfill, a municipal waste landfill located in New Morgan Borough, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Specifically, the complaint alleges that the operations of the landfill are creating off-site odors which cause or contribute to public nuisances. Plaintiff claims in its complaint that the landfill has received 17 notices of violation (NOV) from the Department of Environmental Protection.4 Several complaints were also received from private residents. As a result of the off-site migration of said odors and associated air borne contaminants, numerous Berks County residents, particularly those residing within a two-mile radius of the landfill, have been deprived of the quiet enjoyment of their property.

Plaintiff believes as the host county for the landfill, it has a right to bring an action on behalf of its citizens to restrain the public nuisance, as well as to enjoin violations of the SWMA and Act 101 and to prevent diminution of property value. Plaintiff seeks relief in the form of an injunction, enjoining defendants from operating [432]*432the landfill until such time as it is demonstrated that no public nuisances will be created or will continue to be created.

Defendants filed the within preliminary objections, alleging that each count in the complaint, and the complaint in its entirety, is fatally defective and must be dismissed with prejudice. Argument was held on the preliminary objections on April 19, 2004.

Preliminary objections should be sustained only in cases that are “clear and free from doubt.” Ellenbogen v. PNC Bank N.A., 731 A.2d 175, 181 (Pa. Super. 1999). In considering the within preliminary objections, this court must admit as true all material facts as set forth in the complaint, as well as all inferences deducible therefrom. McMahon v. Shea, 547 Pa. 124, 129, 688 A.2d 1178, 1181 (1997). The question then becomes “whether, on the facts averred, the law says with certainty that no recovery is possible. Where a doubt exists as to whether a demurrer should be sustained, this doubt should be resolved in favor of overruling it.” Id., citing Mahoney v. Funches, 503 Pa. 60, 66, 468 A.2d 458, 461-62 (1983).

The first objection we must consider is whether this court can hear the case because plaintiff failed to join DEP as an indispensable party. See Centolanza v. Lehigh Valley Dairies Inc., 540 Pa. 398, 658 A.2d 336 (1995), citing Sprague v. Casey, 520 Pa. 38, 550 A.2d 184 (1988), for the proposition that absence of an indispensable party goes to a court’s jurisdiction and prevents it from granting relief.

Defendants argue that DEP is an indispensable party and that plaintiff’s failure to name DEP is fatal to the complaint. In support of their position, defendants cite the case of CRY Inc. v. Mill Service Inc., 536 Pa. 462, [433]*433640 A.2d 372 (1994). In CRY, a case involving a citizen’s group filing a claim against an alleged polluter, the issue was whether DER5 should have been joined, our Supreme Court restated the appropriate analysis for determining whether a party is indispensable:6

“(1) Do absent parties have a right or interest related to the claim?

“(2) If so, what is the nature of that right or interest?

“(3) Is that right or interest essential to the merits of the issue?

“(4) Can justice be afforded without violating the due process rights of absent parties?” Id. at 468-69,640 A.2d at 375.

The Supreme Court found that all four considerations were present. First,

“DER is the agency of government responsible for regulating harmful pollution of the kind alleged in this lawsuit. Second,.... DER’s regulatory activity and authority may be affected by an adjudication of [the] lawsuit. Third,... [bjecause DER’s regulatory activity may be affected by any order entered in this case, and because compliance with that order may require the cooperation of DER, its interest is essential. Finally . . . [i]f DER were not party to this suit, it may withhold permits necessary to carry out remedies which may be ordered or it may seek to commence a multiplicity of actions in which the same or related matters are at issue.” Id. at 469-70, 640 A.2d at 376.

[434]*434Plaintiff argues that the CRY case is distinguishable on the facts, and that Centolanza, supra, controls. The Centolanza case involved landowners who brought an action against the current and former owners of adjacent land to recover for contamination of their land by waste water and fuel oil. The Supreme Court recognized CRY and utilized the Mechanicsburg analysis in the same manner.

In ruling that DER was not an indispensable party, the court distinguished Centolanza on the facts. First, the plaintiffs did not allege that DER failed to perform its function, including halting, ceasing or abating the alleged nuisance. In CRY, the plaintiff alleged in its complaint that DER engaged in misfeasance and malfeasance. Secondly, the plaintiffs did not request any type of relief directly involving the Commonwealth. In CRY, plaintiff made two demands for relief, which required action by DER. Finally, in CRY, DER’s cooperation was unlikely because DER insisted that a court was powerless to order certain relief, which was not the case in Centolanza.

Plaintiff, in this case, like the plaintiff in the Centolanza case, did not claim in its complaint that DEP acted improperly in any manner, nor did it seek relief or any action from DEP. This court agrees with plaintiff that DEP is not an indispensable party. This matter can proceed without impairing any rights or interest of DEP. The preliminary objection raising the issue of indispensable party is hereby overruled.

We next review defendants’ objection to Count I, alleging that plaintiff has no authority to bring an action under SWMA.

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Bluebook (online)
66 Pa. D. & C.4th 429, 2004 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 241, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/county-of-berks-v-allied-waste-industries-inc-pactcomplberks-2004.