Here is a complete blip.tv video of the 9/14/09 public informational meeting regarding the Solid Waste Management Alternatives Study. This video is 2 hours 6 minutes long and was recorded by Mimi Odgers of Water Not Waste.
Video highlights:
1:17:48-1:19:20 and 1:53:07-1:54:55: Ward 7 City Council candidate Gene Tacy expresses skepticism about expanding the landfill over the Barnes Aquifer recharge area. He feels this will incur greater environmental risks than we tolerate in other areas. Tacy is also concerned that financial assumptions made by expansion proponents might not pan out.
From the official meeting description:
The Board of Public Works is hosting a public informational meeting relating to the recently completed Solid Waste Management Alternatives Study [PDF, 2.7MB]. The first meeting will be mainly for a presentation of the study by Stantec & HDR [8/17/09, see video and slides]. 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.
See also:
Video: Landfill Options – Public Information Meeting of 8/17/09
Gazette: “Landfill study eyed in detail at local forum” (8/18/09)
Gazette: “Landfill question on ballot – take 2” (9/18/09)
The City Council Thursday approved placing a second nonbinding question about the city’s landfill expansion before voters in November – but many councilors did so with the knowledge that they could modify or kill the idea at a special meeting next week.
The question, approved by a 5-3 vote on first reading, states: “The Board of Public Works received a waiver from the Department of Environmental Protection to expand the landfill on Glendale Road, which will reach capacity around 2011 and close. Should the Northampton landfill be expanded?”
Water Not Waste Achieves Ballot Question Signature Goal
It is official that we collected the required number of registered voter’s signatures and our question WILL be on the November 3rd ballot!
The question reads:
“Shall the City of Northampton expand the Northampton landfill over the Barnes Aquifer?”
Video: Ordinance Committee Meeting of 9/14/09; Heavy Public Uses, Landfill Ballot Questions
0:41:40- 0:49:04… Dr. Jo-Anne Bessette, who also lives near the landfill, speaks on a range of concerns about landfill expansion and the process surrounding it.
“An uphill slog: Fighting the landfill expansion is not going to be easy” – Mike Kirby
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.
Paradise City Forum: Landfill and Aquifer