May 10—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Richland Township residents want township officials to stop an asphalt company from building a manufacturing plant in the area.

Quaker Sales Corp. is requesting a variance from the township zoning hearing board so it can build a plant along Mine 37 Road, off Eisenhower Boulevard.

A zoning hearing board meeting is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. May 17. If a variance is granted, township supervisors would subsequently vote on the zoning board's recommendation to allow the plant's construction.

Joseph Green, of Sanrue Drive, addressed the supervisors Monday with concerns of air pollution as well as noise that would result from tri-axle traffic associated with the plant.

"Asphalt plants put out tens of thousands of particulates and volatile organic compounds, which are known carcinogens," Green said.

He said he believed any property tax revenue the township coffers would gain from the site would be offset by declined residential property values.

A Facebook group called "No Asphalt Plant in Richland Township" has gained 250 members sharing Green's concerns.

On that page, a link is posted to a story from Irvine California, where hundreds of residents with complaints of noxious odors opened a class action lawsuit against an asphalt company.

"We don't want this happening in our neighborhood," said one member of the Richland group on Facebook.

Some residents have urged township officials to conduct an independent study of the environmental and public health impact associated with Quaker Sales' plan.

According to residents' research, the plant would affect air quality for two-mile radius that encompasses 1,600 homes as well as a few schools, Green said.

The area where Quaker Sales proposes building the plant is zoned for light industrial use. For the company's plans to move forward, the Richland Township Zoning Hearing Board must approve a variance for the company's heavy industrial manufacturing project.

The land where Quaker Sales plans to build is a subdivision of a 106-acre parcel owned by Ruth Klementik, Cambria County Geographic information systems shows.

Richland Township supervisors approved subdividing the land in February.

Quaker Sales is a contractor and producer of asphalt pavements with two asphalt plants in Johnstown and Northern Cambria, its website reads.

The company manufactures state-certified asphalt paving materials including hot and warm mix asphalts and coldpatch for local construction contractors and municipalities.

For more than 80 years, the company has supplied asphalt pavements and related construction services in Cambria, Clearfield, Indiana, Jefferson, Somerset and Westmoreland counties.