A landfill in Steuben County wants to expand. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is hosting two virtual public comment sessions on the proposal on Nov. 13.
Hakes C&D Disposal Inc. located in the town of Campbell owns the landfill.
The company is proposing a 43-acre expansion of its existing 79 acres for a new landfill disposal area.
Hakes C&D Disposal, Inc. is a subsidiary of Casella Waste Systems, which owns multiple waste management facilities in Schuyler, Chemung and Steuben counties.
According to the DEC, the landfill project would add acreage to an existing on-site soil borrow area, which is used in landfill excavation operations. The proposal will relocate some structures such as an office and maintenance building, a truck scale and a tarping station.
Expansion also includes building new stormwater ponds and modifying existing ones, along with the on-site leachate transfer storage. The landfill’s gas management and treatment system will be broadened as part of the proposal as well.
Additionally, the company would like to move Manning Ridge Road to accommodate the expansion of the landfill.
The company’s application includes an alternative landfill liner design and a request from the DEC for a variance from 6 NYCRR Part 363 for the compacted clay liner to “contain particles up to three-inches in diameter, instead of one-inch in diameter.”
A new enclosed flare to control methane burnoff from landfill air emissions is part of a draft Air State Facility Permit (ASF) prepared by the DEC. An ASF is required by industrial facilities to limit emissions. Landfills are a source of methane gas emissions. The DEC stated the existing flare will be used as a backup.
The town of Campbell has oversight of municipal coordination, planning and approval along with the DEC as the lead agency on the project. However, the village of Painted Post Planning Board raised concerns about pollutants and emergency services costs that could befall the village and its residents.
The chair of the planning board for the village of Painted Post submitted a five-page letter for public comment. At a planning board meeting on Nov. 5, the board unanimously approved the letter be written and submitted on behalf of the village planning board. The board chair provided the letter to WSKG.
There are concerns about the village’s proximity to downstream wastewater discharge into the Cohocton River from the landfill and greenhouse gas emissions. The letter indicates that the town of Erwin and hamlet of Gang Mills are also directly impacted by their proximity to the Cohocton River.
Erwin Hollow Creek flows from the landfill to the Corning-Painted Post Middle School, according to the US Geological Survey. The village would like more details about how the water quality is monitored for this waterway.
The landfill accepts waste from outside Steuben County, including from oil and gas extraction activities, which is from hydraulic fracturing. The application indicates this practice will continue with the expansion. It is unclear what geographical location this waste is coming from.
The Painted Post Fire Department is the closest to the landfill and the village planning board’s letter posed questions about the fire department’s understanding of what is contained at the landfill, its capacity to respond to chemical hazards and what entity will bear the costs of the emergency services.
Public comment participants must be registered by 4 p.m. on Nov. 12 to be heard during the virtual hearings.
Public comments can also be submitted to the DEC in writing up to Nov. 24.
