We are pleased to publicize this flyer from Citizens United for a Healthy Future, also available as a PDF:
See also:
Saving Paradise: Articles about the Proposed Northampton Regional Landfill Expansion
City of Springfield: DPW To Issue Fines to Non-Recyclers This Week (10/14/08)
In a continuing effort to increase recycling, the City of Springfield Department of Public Works will this week begin issuing fines to owners of households that have City rubbish service but do not participate in recycling. The City has a Mandatory Recycling Ordinance.
Valley Advocate: “Trash is Good” (10/9/08)
When the landfill was last expanded, in 1989, the state picked up the tab for the full $6.9 million capital expenditure. Times have changed. This time around, the city must issue a series of municipal bonds to pay for the construction. Given the DPW’s ballpark per-acre costs of $400,000 to $450,000, construction might cost $12 to $13.5 million…
The trash disposal business is notoriously competitive. Landfills compete with recycling, with incineration, and with each other. Source reduction, which may meet a valid societal objective, is structurally at odds with the profit-driven, pro-trash landfill model…
In the landfill business, trash is good. Currently Northampton’s Solid Waste Enterprise Fund relies on 45,000 to 50,000 tons per year in order to meet budget. If Pioneer Valley residents significantly reduce what they throw away, the city may move to expand the landfill’s “wasteshed”–that is, to entice tonnage from other areas. If another regional facility offers haulers a cheaper alternative, this strategy may fail. Duseau Trucking has a permit to operate a transfer station in North Hatfield, with rail access. If, for instance, Duseau were able to ship our region’s trash to another facility at a lower cost, it is possible that the Northampton municipal landfill would end up cash-starved…