Here is a complete blip.tv video of the 8/17/09 public information meeting on landfill options. This video is 1 hour 48 minutes long and was recorded by Lachlan Ziegler.
From the official description: “The Board of Public Works is hosting a public informational meeting relating to the recently completed Solid Waste Managment Alternatives Study. The first meeting [8/17/09] will be mainly for a presentation of the study by Stantec & HDR. There will be time for a public comment at this meeting. The second meeting will be held on Monday, September 14, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. at the JFK Community Room. A briefer presentation will be made at the second meeing by Stantec & HDR with more time alloted to answer questions posed by the residents in attendance.”
Download a PDF of Stantec/HDR’s presentation here (630KB). Below are selected slides from pages 20 and 30, suggesting opportunities in recycling more of our organic waste and showing how Northampton’s current $68.07/ton average net tip fee for commercial customers compares to some out-of-state disposal options:
See also:
Gazette: “Landfill study eyed in detail at local forum” (8/17/09)
Department of Public Works: Landfill Documents
Northampton Solid Waste Alternatives Google Group
Solid Waste Management Alternatives Study (PDF, 2.7MB)
Key Portions of the Solid Waste Management Alternatives Study
A critical element missing from the study is an estimate of the value of Barnes Aquifer water at risk from contamination due to landfill expansion. Neither the words “Barnes” nor “Aquifer” appear anywhere in the study. City officials like Senior Land Use Planner Carolyn Misch suggest that closing the landfill will likely mean shipping our waste to a disadvantaged community in, say, South Carolina (see 8/13/09 Planning Board meeting). The Alternatives Study, however, suggests there’s a wide range of locations that will accept waste. It would seem likely we can find one that’s a better site than the one proposed for Western Northampton, i.e., one that’s further away from homes and does not threaten sensitive natural resources. Environmental and social justice should certainly be factors in site selection, whether inside Northampton or out.
Videos: Planning Board Meeting of 8/13/09; Special Permits for Heavy Public Uses
Video: Committee on Economic Development, Housing and Land Use, 8/10/09 Meeting
Video and Slides: Public Forum on Innovative Approaches to Manage Northampton’s Solid Waste, 11/19/08
Water Not Waste Launches to Save Barnes Aquifer
Paradise City Forum: Landfill and Aquifer