Facts-
- No one can promise “lower taxes” The revenue for this can be spent however they so choose.
- Permit could bring 100 or more tractor trailers full of garbage a day to our community, thats 200 trips through your town.
- No social need. There are 3 landfills within 30 miles of each other and all within 20 miles of here. They are already collecting green energy and have all the safe guards in place.
- Once a landfill is here we are stuck with it FOREVER.
- If approved it will raise Arcadia taxes for the first 8 years. If permits are not obtained then Arcadia gets nothing and your left with higher taxes.
Click
to sign our petition electronically
mail your check payable to
CCOA
PO Box 352 Newark, NY 14513
If you have any questions contact save.arcadia@gmail.com, 315-332-1342
Links
- this law was put in place in 2006 by some of the existing members of the board If this law is overturned landfills could be put anywhere on private land
Please Contact save.arcadia@gmail.com If You Have Questions Or Concerns
An Arcadia citizen followed this garbage truck on the thruway for many miles as it leaked on our roads.
Lake Country or Trash Country, You Decide
By Finger Lakes Zero Waste Coalition
The Finger Lakes Region is becoming the dumping ground for everyone else’s garbage. Once there were 358 active landfills in New York, now there are only 27 lined landfills in the State1. Landfills are a rare “commodity”. In a classic upstate-downstate pattern, the six largest and still active landfills in New York are situated within the Lake Ontario watershed; there are no active landfills in the New York City or Long Island regions. Long Island passed laws that eliminated direct landfilling of municipal solid waste.
The Finger Lakes Watershed is host to two of these mega-landfills: IESI Seneca Meadows, Inc., a privately owned landfill located in Waterloo, NY, which is the largest landfill in NY; and, the public owned but privately operated Ontario County landfill, located in Stanley, NY, off Routes 5&20 and ranked # 4 in volumes of garbage dumped.
Seneca Meadows accepts about 6,000 tons of garbage per day. Ontario County’s landfill can accept about 3,000 tons of garbage per day. Just north of us, the High Acres Western Expansion Landfill, located in Fairport, NY, tied for 2nd place in volumes of garbage, accepts up to 3,500 tons of garbage a day.
This means 12,500 tons of garbage can be imported into the northern Finger Lakes Region and deposited permanently in our watershed every day. These three mega-landfills received 40% of the total municipal solid waste disposed of in New York State in 2008. This is more than our fair share. We are wasting our children’s future with other people’s garbage.
How much garbage are we talking about?
To put these volumes of waste into perspective, think of the Great Pyramid of Egypt in Giza, Egypt. It is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Its base is approximately 754 by 754 ft, and it stands approximately 481 ft tall, occupying about 3.4 million cubic yards of air space. Ontario County’s garbage piles are authorized to be up to 987 feet tall, according to Jim Bohlig, President of Casella Waste Systems, Inc., the private company that operates Ontario County’s landfill (The Daily Messenger, Sept. 9, 2003). Casella is authorized to collect about 9.1 million cubic yards of municipal solid waste at the Ontario County landfill, a volume equivalent to 2.7 Great Pyramids of Egypt.
But it doesn’t stop there. Casella and the Ontario County Board of Supervisors have plans to expand the landfill even further, adding another 8.7 million cubic yards of garbage in the future, creating another 2.6 Great Pyramids. This is the legacy our grandchildren will inherit, 5 Great Pyramids of Garbage. The smallest of the three, Ontario County accepted 8% of the State’s total garbage in 2008. Consider how many more piles of garbage are being created by Seneca Meadows, who received 22% of the state’s waste, and High Acres, who received 10%. Without strong public opposition, we will live in a Finger Lakes dominated by garbage pyramids.
Landfills pollute land, air and water. Older landfills that were unlined created more serious toxic waste and water pollution problems. But even new landfills create environmental problems. New landfills are constructed with a liner built underneath the pile of garbage, and a system constructed within the liner to collect leachate. Leachate is created from rain and snow water that becomes contaminated as it percolates through the garbage pile creating a toxic tea at
the bottom of the pile. Leachate collection systems are required to prevent the contaminated leachate from entering the ground water.
Common chemical contaminants in leachate identified in chemical analyses of leachate collected from the Ontario County and Seneca Meadows landfills include 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,4-dichlorobenzene, acenaphthene, arsenic, barium, benzene, chromium, copper, cyanide, ethylbenzene, fluorene, lead, methylene chloride, naphthalene, nickel, phenanthrene, phthalates including bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and diethyl phthalate, phenols, selenium, silver, toluene and zinc. These chemicals are all considered primary pollutants and/or pollutants of concern in drinking water by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Ontario County landfill generated more than 10 million gallons of leachate in 2009. This leachate was trucked to the municipal waste water treatment plants in Canandaigua and Geneva for “treatment”. Waste Water Treatment Plants are not designed to remove and disable these chemicals, they are primarily designed to deal with the organic materials you flush down your sewer system. Effluent records show that some of these chemical compounds pass through the Water Treatment Plants directly into Seneca Lake and Canandiagua Lake.
Garbage piles release gases that result from biological decomposition of the garbage, primarily carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas (GHG), and methane, an odorless and explosive gas that is also a GHG but is 32 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Other common components of landfill gas include hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, benzene, dichloroethylene, dichloromethane, ethylbenzene, toluene, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and vinyl chloride (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/landfill/html/intro.html). These gases are released until the landfill is capped.
While newer landfills are constructed with more regulations to protect our health and safety, all landfill liners leak sooner or later. The initial failure of a liner system can occur through holes, rips, and tears caused during construction, or at points of deterioration in the flexible membrane. These small failures will not produce large plumes of underground contamination that are easily detected, but small plumes that are not likely to be detected by the minimal number of monitoring wells required by regulations.
Manufacturers guarantee liners for about 30 years. Landfills, however, last forever. If the chemical contaminants contained in leachate reach groundwater, the contamination can be damaging, particularly if it reaches drinking water wells. Contaminated groundwater can also cause contaminated air in surrounding homes, and surface water run-off from landfills can be contaminated and make its way into nearby bodies of water. “Normal” unpleasant odors from landfills can also cause health problems, e.g. eye irritation or respiratory ailments.
A recent review of epidemiological studies conducted by Dr. Daniela Porta and colleagues concluded, with a high level of confidence, that the relative risk for low birth weight babies was higher than average if you lived within 1.2 miles of a landfill, and the relative risks of liver cancer, soft-tissue sarcoma and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma were higher than average if you lived within 1.9 miles of a garbage incinerator (Systematic review of epidemiological studies on health effects associated with management of solid waste, 2009, Environmental Health, vol. 8, pages 60-74).
For every ton of municipal solid waste produced, 71 tons of industrial discarded waste are produced (Opportunities to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions through Materials and Land
Management Practices, September 2009, US EPA). According to the EPA, composting one ton of food scraps results in a net GHG reduction of 0.185 tons of carbondioxide equivalents while landfilling that material would increase GHGs by 0.74 CO2E
We can do something about this.
The Ontario County landfill is publically owned by the County, unlike Seneca Meadows and High Acres, which are privately owned.
Vermont, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio all charge a fee or tax on the disposal of solid waste ranging from $1.50 to $7.25 per ton. These fees provide both a disincentive to creating garbage and as a source of revenue to finance programs that reduce garbage and increase reuse and recycling. New York does not currently charge any fees, making it more cost-effective for other states to ship their garbage to us.
Before the County contracted with Casella to operate the landfill, the County received an average of 750 tons of trash a day between 2000-2003. Casella took over operations in 2004 and the amount of garbage doubled to more than 1,500 tons per day. Between 2008 and 2009 the amount has tripled to an average of 2,200 per day.
using 139 trucks a day to transport the garbage into the landfill.
This is their trash and our future, and policies adopted by the County to encourage continued transport of garbage to the Finger Lakes is simply giving others permission to pollute our region.
Dump the trash economy, take tourism instead.
What we need is more courage and leadership. Courage to make hard decisions that increase the financial stability of the county by economic development of new industries rather than the quick and easy handout offered by garbage companies.
The proposed waste-to-energy projects, i.e. gasification and methane capture, are presented in the glorified context of “green energy”, but these are, in reality, the least beneficial and sustainable waste management options available. These are policy choices, not the only options. Diverting organic material from the waste-stream and redirecting it to a composting facility would eliminate the production of methane from any new landfill piles created, and would dramatically reduce the volume of material filling up the limited space we have in our County landfill.
Don’t waste tomorrow. Say “YES” to Zero. Industry learned how to adapt a philosophy of “zero tolerance” for accidents
I want to thank everyone who has supported us in our fight to prevent the north central Finger Lakes region from becoming the ultimate dumping ground for the entire Northeast.
As a consequence of privatization of landfills in Ontario and Seneca counties, the northern Finger Lakes region has become the garbage capital of the Northeast, with 9, 000 tons of garbage per day trucked in from downstate counties, other states and Canada.
These mega-landfills damage the aesthetic character of our region, upon which our more sustainable tourism and wine industries are based. The business model of corporations operating these landfills is antithetical to zero waste principles, which seek to divert resources from landfilling and incineration, and create green jobs in our local economy.
“Let's not tie our future to trash.” Kenny Sondheim, MPN Feb 7, 2010, letters
Run as a tax-exempt private business.
we in Ontario County don't want to import waste from counties trying to get rid of it. We want to handle just Ont. County waste, we want a responsible integrated waste management program emphasizing waste reduction.
Each American produces about five pounds of trash daily, up from less than three pounds in 1960.
Recycled glass uses 40 percent less energy than recycled aluminum and 50 percent less than polyethylene terephthalate (PET), commonly used to make plastic bottles, according to the Glass Packaging Institute. Unlike other materials, glass packaging is "endlessly recyclable," reports the institute. "Glass bottles and jars go from recycling bin to store shelf in as little as 30 days. Using recycled glass in the manufacturing process saves raw materials, lessens the demand for energy, cuts air emissions and extends furnace life."
“The landfill took in 678, 096 tons of garbage in 2008, with less than 13 percent coming from Ontario County. Most of it came from elsewhere in New York counties and about 18 percent was generated outside the state. The county gets $2 million annually from Casella for the first 600, 000 tons of waste brought to the landfill. It receives about $2.37 for each ton taken in after that.” MPN Sept 30, 2009
“"The landfill is one large part of what we currently do to manage waste," said Hughes. "They've got the day-to-day data that we've been asking for." Casella's pilot waste-tofuel project at the county landfill will be a big part of the plan, Hughes said.” MPN, Aug 23, 2009, regarding county’s SWP
“Ontario County Administrator Geoff Astles called the argument about the county accepting waste from outside its borders "irrelevant." "First of all the county decided to allow outside waste
to come into the landfill years before we even contemplated leasing operations to Casella or anybody else," he said. "The other reason that the argument is somewhat irrelevant is there are fixed costs to operate a landfill. There is no way that the county could afford to operate the landfill on its own and only take county garbage." The county gets $2 million annually for Casella for the first 600, 000 tons of waste brought to the landfill. It receives approximately $2.37 for each ton taken in after that.” Aug 4, 2009
1 Beyond Waste: A Sustainable Materials Management Strategy for New York DRAFT, 2010, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation,
http://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/41831.html
May 8 Arcadia board meeting minutes
Joe Allocco, Managing Member of Arcadia Hills LLC addressed the Town Board regarding a new business plan for purchasing 161 acres of Town land for the purpose of developing a new solid waste management facility. The land will be put back on the tax rolls and he is not asking for any tax relief. All investments will be made by Joe. He has a vested interest in this community. The facility will be run directly by Joe and he will not be an absentee owner. This is a lengthy process and it will be done right. Attorney Ron Hull of Underberg & Kessler formally presented the purchase offer to the Town Board. The components of the offer are the purchase & sale agreement, host community benefit agreement and the indemnification agreement. The purchase price of the land is for $ 1.18 million which is the full appraisal amount of the land. The starting host fee is $ 3.00 per ton; an estimated revenue for the Town of over $ 25 million for a 17 year period. There is a yearly educational scholarship of $ 25,000 and yearly contributions to the 3 fire departments. The project will employ 20-25 people and during different phases there could be 50 employees. The residents will be able to drop off their recycling every Saturday morning at a site. Arcadia Hills LLC will assume all responsibility for the operation of the site; the Town will no longer have any responsibility for the old landfill site. The operation will be monitored by the NYSDEC.
Engineer John Battalia of En Sol Inc stated his primary work is with solid waste facilities. The site will have a double composite liner which was adopted by New York State for all solid waste facilities. The facility will be permitted for 2000 tons a day which will include household, commercial and industrial waste. The waste will be strictly monitored before it is even dumped. The waste products will not be left exposed, it will be buried.
The Board will be having a work session to discuss protocol for the Public Informational Meeting. Area residents will be able to speak first and out of area people speaking last. The Board will be introducing the proposed project and then Arcadia Hills LLC will present the facts, followed by questions. The public needs to be properly informed and not left to form opinions based on speculation. The timing of the press release will be discussed and the direction of the public meeting.
The board scheduled the Work Shop Session for May 15, 2012 at 4:30PM in the Supervisor’s office and to schedule a Public Informational Meeting on June 5, 2012 at 7:00PM at the Newark Senior High School Auditorium regarding the purchase offer from Arcadia Hills LLC. All voted AYE.
The board agreed to pay $100 to the school to cover expenses in televising the Public Informational Meeting.