At their twice-yearly evening meeting Wednesday, Schuylkill County commissioners approved the purchase of a 2013 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pickup truck for the county’s Drug Task Force.

The District Attorney’s Office will buy the truck, which District Attorney Michael A. O’Pake said has 40,000 miles from Debra Holley for $22,499.

Holley works in the DA’s office.

The truck will be paid in full from the Drug Task Force Forfeiture Account, O’Pake said.

O’Pake refuted a claim by Palo Alto resident Jeffrey Dunkel, who lost his bid for a seat on the commissioner’s board in the Primary Election, that District Attorney’s office had $1 million in the forfeiture fund, and that O’Pake had promised $500,000 to local police departments but didn’t follow through.

O’Pake said he does not have $1 million in the fund, and did not promise the $500,000 in the fund to anyone.

O’Pake said he had spoken about a $1 million drug bust, and that the fund had “$500,000 that can be distributed to police departments to help them fight the war on drugs.”

“I never said I’d give them $500,000 out to anybody. I would love to give $500,000 out to someone. But that’s not the comment I made,” he said.

Dunkel also took commissioners to task for failing to acknowledge the retirement of Chief Deputy Sheriff Brian Tobin, who retired after 13 years.

One of Tobin’s duties was to provide security for commissioners’ meetings.

In April, Schuylkill Technology Center Criminal Justice students presented Tobin with a Dallas Cowboys cake in honor of his work on the STC Criminal Justice Occupational Advisory Committee.

He was named Pennsylvania Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 25 Officer of the Year in 2020.

Biosolids

In other matters at the workshop session, commissioners heard from several people who live in the west end of the county, specifically the Frailey and Porter townships area, who have been plagued by the stench of bio solids - treated human waste - that is processed by Tully Environmental.

The company in May agreed to pay $50,000 to the state Department of Environmental Protection and to put in place procedures to mitigate the odor.

But frustrated residents say it didn’t do much. People who live in nearby Good Spring have begged commissioners to step into the situation to help them.

Commissioner Gary J. Hess said they have been doing what they can, going to the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania for advice.

“We have in the past looked into this to see what we could do, legally,” he said.

Hess said they’ve contacted the Department of Conservation, DEP, and the governor’s office.

He said an ordinance would have to withstand legal challenges.

Two residents of the west end suggested Schuylkill commissioners talk with their Carbon County colleagues to see how they are handing a similar situation.

Carbon County commissioners are fine-tuning a resolution that would give local municipalities instead of the state control over the use of biosolids on farmland.