As a former Delaware County chair of the Public Works and Solid Waste Committee, I had the opportunity to see firsthand the planning, investment and long-term commitment that went into Delaware County’s solid waste system.
For more than 50 years, Delaware County has worked to maintain local responsibility for its waste through an integrated system of recycling, composting and landfill management. The county did not simply choose the easiest course of hauling its garbage somewhere else. It made substantial investments in infrastructure designed to reduce the amount of waste ultimately placed in the landfill.
One of the most significant investments was the county’s municipal solid-waste composting facility, which began full operation in 2006.
That system has produced measurable results. Composting and recycling have significantly reduced landfill disposal and extended the useful life of the county landfill.
Delaware County’s efforts have also received significant outside recognition. In 2006, the county’s Solid Waste Management Program received the American Public Works Association New York Chapter’s Technical Innovation Project of the Year Award.
In 2015, Delaware County Solid Waste Director Sue McIntyre received the New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse and Recycling’s Recycling Leadership Award. The organization specifically recognized the county’s successful operation of its municipal solid-waste composting facility and recycling system and credited those efforts with conserving landfill capacity and extending the life of the county landfill.
Perhaps most significant in the current discussion is the recognition Delaware County has received from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation itself.
In responding to comments on New York State’s Beyond Waste solid-waste management plan, DEC acknowledged that mixed municipal solid-waste composting has had a difficult history nationally because of odors, contamination and poor-quality finished products. DEC then specifically identified Delaware County as a “very notable exception,” recognizing its ability to produce a compost product suitable for higher-end markets.
DEC later again cited Delaware County in its solid-waste rulemaking as a facility capable of handling mixed materials and producing a marketable compost product.
That history should carry considerable weight as DEC considers regulations that could now threaten the long-term viability of the very system it previously recognized as a success.
I fully recognize the importance of addressing PFAS contamination. My concern is whether the proposed requirements are technically achievable and economically sustainable for rural, municipally operated landfills.
If compliance requires millions of dollars in new treatment infrastructure together with substantial continuing operating expenses, the consequences deserve serious examination.
Closing a landfill does not make its environmental responsibilities disappear. Leachate must still be managed and treated after closure. At the same time, waste that would otherwise be disposed of locally would have to be transported to other facilities, potentially requiring longer hauling distances, additional truck traffic, additional fuel consumption and higher costs for local residents and businesses.
There is also a broader question of public policy. Delaware County has spent decades building a locally controlled system intended to reduce waste, recycle materials, compost organic material and preserve landfill capacity. Regulations that make municipally operated landfills financially unsustainable could ultimately shift even more waste disposal to a small number of large private landfill operators.
From my experience working with Delaware County’s solid-waste system, I believe the state should be looking for ways to preserve successful municipal systems while accomplishing the important goal of reducing PFAS contamination.
DEC should provide reasonable implementation schedules, technically achievable treatment standards and substantial financial assistance to municipalities required to install costly new treatment systems.
For decades, Delaware County has invested in recycling, composting and responsible solid waste management. Those investments have preserved landfill capacity, reduced the amount of waste requiring final disposal and earned recognition from professional organizations and New York state itself.
In my view, New York state should recognize that history as it moves forward with these regulations makes certain that efforts to address PFAS do not unintentionally jeopardize a solid waste system that has been repeatedly recognized for its environmental accomplishments.
Samuel N. Rowe Jr.
Hancock
Former Delaware County Chair, Public Works and Solid Waste Committee
Former Town of Hancock Supervisor, 2002–2018
