The Coventry Landfill sits on over 600 acres in northern Vermont, and Casella Waste wants to expand it an additional 51 acres. This expansion is unnecessary and dangerous to the health of Vermonters.
“We need to reduce our waste instead of looking for more places to bury it,” said Tom Irwin, Vice President and Director of CLF New Hampshire. “Waste Management is dumping about a million and a half tons of waste per year into the Turnkey landfill, putting nearby communities and waterways at risk. It’s time for the state to stop undermining waste reduction efforts by expanding landfills and instead focus on zero waste strategies that treat waste as a resource.”
Last month, on a covered bridge spanning New Hampshire’s Ammonoosuc River, I stood beside our partners from Toxics Action Center as we announced the filing of a federal lawsuit against Casella Waste Systems for ongoing water pollution from its massive landfill in Bethlehem, New Hampshire. Our suit tackles Casella’s longstanding, and continuing, violations of the… Continue reading Bethlehem Landfill’s Pollution of Ammonoosuc River Must Stop
Incinerator companies have done a great job green-washing their true impacts on communities by implying that so-called “waste-to-incineration” facilities are good neighbors offering a safe process that eliminates waste, allows for robust recycling programs, and generates renewable energy. Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is burning waste harms the health, environment, and economy of many communities. The perceived benefits simply aren’t worth the risk.
“The Wheelabrator landfill is the most dangerous in Massachusetts, and it is putting the health of nearby residents at risk,” said Kirstie Pecci of the Conservation Law Foundation in a written statement announcing the appeal.
Over the last few years, the push to get food waste out of landfills and incinerators has become the new kale. Or cupcakes. Or bone broth. You get the picture. And rightfully so! As a nation, we waste a staggering amount of food every year: about 40 percent of what we produce. That’s more than… Continue reading Are You Composting Yet? If Not, Spring Is a Good Time to Start!
“The Wheelabrator landfill is the most dangerous in Massachusetts, and it is putting the health of nearby residents at risk,” said Kirstie Pecci, director of the Zero Waste Project and a Senior Fellow at CLF.
Update May 9, 2018: Conservation Law Foundation has filed an appeal to stop the expansion of the Wheelabrator Saugus ash landfill. When the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) this week gave its final okay for an ash landfill in Saugus to expand, it signaled that polluting our communities and our environment is perfectly fine… Continue reading Public Concerns Ignored in Approval of Massive Landfill Expansion
“By issuing this permit, the Baker administration has clogged our community’s air, water, and land with another 500,000 tons of toxic ash in Rumney Marsh,” said Kirstie Pecci, Director of the Zero Waste Project at Conservation Law Foundation. “We will all be able to breathe easier when the Commonwealth stops pandering to dangerous landfills and starts protecting public health by enforcing its zero waste regulations.”
Local residents have defeated ballot questions aimed at allowing Casella Waste Systems to expand the Bethlehem Landfill. Now CLF and Toxics Action Center have announced a lawsuit to hold the landfill operator accountable for water pollution into the Ammonoosuc River.
