03/11/2026
This is our Annual Report for 2025.
OVERVIEW — 2025 was a year of renewal for MCATS, including adding new members and reestablishing our identity in the region as a credible representative of our community’s environmental interests. We began the year with just a few members to fill a void left by the retirement of the founding generation of MCATS from the 1980s and 90s. That change confronted us with two imperative goals: to reestablish our non-profit organization, 501(c) 3, status that had lapsed since 2017, and to renew our membership with the Michigan Environmental Council. Both of these goals required a treasury balance that we no longer held.
At the same time, the membership took on the challenges to our local environment that went into high gear in 2025. Among those were:
1) Renewal of Wayne Disposal Inc. license renewal and enlargement of their gargantuan hazardous waste disposal facility next to Willow Run Airport,
2) The active effort to site a large Data Center on the property that had been proposed for building the original Envotech waste handling facility, and
3) The WDI Application for technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM).
Under the leadership of our new Chair, Josh Kofflin, we also worked to establish a social media presence for the organization establishing a new official address and banking resource, a page and an MCATS Gmail presence. We had a booth at Milan’s Earth Day Celebration and developed a temporary presentation display at Milan Public Library. We’re still working on a new Logo. Our Membership List doubled from the beginning of the year to 10+ participants in active discussion.
SUMMARY:
JANUARY
• Status of Michigan Environmental Council Membership
We still need to raise $250 to meet the minimum membership ($500) for MEC
- Direct appeal vs GoFundMe or Non-profit campaign
FEBRUARY
• Efforts to restore Non-profit Status
When taking over MCATS, and absent filing a Form 990, we lost our nonprofit status. This meant that we owed the IRS money, and we have to reapply for nonprofit status.
• Next steps for recertification of MCATS as a 501(c) 3, banking (America 1 Credit Union) requires the following:
- Validated EIN in order to set up the account
- IRS Form 990
- IRS will send EIN document to address of record: Jerry Renning
- State of Michigan, LARA - $25/yr (since 2020)
- MCATS Corp. Documents
APRIL
• Earth Day Celebration in Wilson Park — April 27, Wilson Park
Josh Kofflin, through Moving Milan Forward, led this event. While Josh was coordinating the formal programs of the day, Rod Hill mounted a display at the event, talked to visitors, and presented MCATS history and our current status. We connected with State Rep. Reggie Miller, who attended (through her Chief of Staff, Jackson Pahl) and we discussed ways to support her legislative activities, particularly legislation that would restructure Michigan’s “tipping fees” schedule to discourage the transportation of hazardous materials across our state’s borders.
JUNE - WDI Operating License Renewal
• Public meeting for Wayne Disposal, Inc.’s hazardous waste management facility operating license application — June 26, Wayne County Community College, Ted Scott Campus
An Open House was held to mitigate the public resistance to enlarging the enormous hazmat landfill north of Bellville and it gave MCATS a solid opportunity to reestablish ourselves with the MEC and Michigan state government as well as to reacquaint ourselves the current players in local government and the environmental community.
Rod Hill was able to sign us in to the attendance list as well as to meet some of the technicians involved, as well as some US-EPA representatives. EGLE Senior Engineer, Tiffany Johnson, was very polite and responsive to questions. He also engaged a list of US-EPA representatives, although none of those were forthcoming in answering questions (which was not surprising).
The experience brought up several items of note for our efforts going forward:
Notes for Attending Public Meetings going forward:
• NAME TAGS, there was no way of identifying who I was representing without repeating myself.
• Additional Personnel, It’s not practical to attempt useful one-on-one conversations with multiple people and make useful notes at the same time. A second person would be a big help as backup and to record the event.
• Make an effort to identify and catalogue County and State representatives and specialists for improved contacts going forward.
• Leave pocketknives or other items in the car for future events, as security is bound to tighten going forward.
JULY
• Data Center Proposal for ADC property
Recent interest in the siting of commercial data centers offered us an unexpected prospect of removal of the Envotech (Augusta Development Corp.) property from use as a major hazmat operation. Removal of that property for such use could represent the terminal resolution of MCATS’ need to exist, at least on this issue. This placed us in the awkward position of being both for and against the unpopular land-use proposal.
The property in question included all of the ADC property involved in the Envotech proposal, including the wetlands and even a connection to the Martin-Marietta quarry (see attached). Currently, the attention of this particular proposal has been diverted to other similar projects near-by.
nearby
AUGUST
• WDI Application for TENORM Radioactive Wastes — HR 5923 Restriction and Ban
- Letter of support for Reggie Miller Bills
MCATS drafted a letter of support to Rep. Miller’s efforts to reintroduce the bill, HB 5923, that would amend the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act (NREPA) to no longer allow landfills in Michigan to accept technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material (TENORM) after the bill’s effective date. That bill was never brought out of committee before it expired in 2024.
NOVEMBER
• MCATS Display at Milan Public Library
During the month of November, MCATS utilized the display case at Milan Public Library to give local residents an update and background of our mission and activities. The display included numerous informational panels and some of our T-shirts, hats and printed material, and attracted interest from long-term residents and newcomers.
GOING FORWARD
The year 2025 was a significant relaunch of MCATS including coming out both regionally and locally in critical ways. We began the process of reestablishing our 501(c) 3, non-profit status that brought us closer to establishing a new bank account for handling our fundraising. We were able to reach a new generation of local citizens and government officials in ways that we have not used in many years. Those efforts have garnered a larger list of members and interested citizens that we will leverage in 2026.
As such, we are much closer to our goal of being an effective steward of our community’s environmental future.
It was an important year.
MCATS Team
