The Maine Land Use Regulation Commission (LURC) has unanimously approved rezoning of 120 acres in Township 14 to allow for the development of a secure landfill for construction and demolition debris (CDD). The Clean Water Coalition plans to appeal the decision to superior court, according to coordinator Nancy Oden of Jonesboro.

      At their meeting on August 1 in Greenville, the commissioners offered no comments on the proposed rezoning, but did allow both an opponent of the rezoning, Barbara Lapham of Marion, and the attorney for the applicant, Timothy Pease, to speak. The commission followed the staff recommendation not to reopen the hearing record, as had been requested by Lapham. She also had requested that the decision on the matter be postponed at least until the commission's September meeting.

      Oden writes that the Clean Water Coalition's appeal "is based on the fact that the commissioners were provided faulty information upon which to make their decision, and we will provide correct and true information so they may reconsider their decision."

     In addition to the expected appeal of the LURC decision, Marion Transfer Station Inc., which is seeking to construct the landfill, will have to apply to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for a determination of public benefit and a solid waste license. According to Karen Knuuti, an environmental specialist with the DEP, the process could take a year and a half or longer. The Board of Environmental Protection has the option of assuming jurisdiction over the permitting process, and a hearing may be held at the discretion of the board and the DEP commissioner.

Concerns raised
     Opponent Barbara Lapham says she is concerned that, if the landfill were to leak, the steepness of the Township 14 site would allow leachate to travel down to Clifford Stream and Rocky Brook, which flow into Gardner's Lake. She also argues that leachate would be able to drain toward wetlands of special significance.

     However, LURC staff note that the footprint of the landfill would be over 2,000 feet from Clifford Stream and Rocky Brook and that leachate would be collected and contained. They state that the "weight of evidence in the record shows that the area proposed for rezoning is environmentally suitable. This information indicates that geologic, soil, hydrologic and other site characteristics are generally appropriate for the proposed use." DEP staff will make the final determination of the suitability of the site.

     In addition, Lapham is concerned that much of the waste is being brought in from outside of the county. When LURC granted the rezoning for the existing CDD landfill in Marion in 1997, the public benefit determination was based exclusively on the needs of the members of Marion Transfer Station Inc., with the proposed facility expected to be able to fulfill those needs for 40 years. In the DEP application for that site, the landfill was described as having a lifespan of approximately 20 years. However, two commercial haulers taking waste from towns that are not members of Marion Transfer Station, Lilac/Sunrise Disposal and DM&J Enterprises, were also allowed to bring demolition waste to the facility, and Lapham says that the out-of-county waste has led to the rapid filling of the landfill. She points, for instance, to March 2000 tonnage figures, in which 96% of the waste was brought in by DM&J Enterprises, which hauls demolition debris from Hancock and Penobscot counties. The landfill is now reaching its capacity in six years, and she agrees with estimates that some 60% of the waste being accepted at the present landfill is from outside Washington County. "It appears that their intent was other than what they said their intent was," says Lapham of the landfill's operators.

     LURC staff, though, in their report to the commission state, "The fact that Hancock and Penobscot counties are in the region but not in Washington County is peripheral to the central question of regional need. The commission assesses need on a regional level, and there is sufficient evidence of regional need."

     Lapham also notes the difficulties she has faced in obtaining information about the project, including the revised rezoning application to LURC, the transcripts of the public hearing held by LURC in November, and minutes of the meetings of the Marion Transfer Station board of directors. "In many ways, we the citizens have not received due process," says Lapham. "We need to be able to receive the same equal protection as anyone up at Moosehead Lake or anywhere else in the unorganized territory."