About 50 people crowded into the Van Buren Town Hall to share their opinions on the proposed “Ash for Trash” waste management partnership between Onondaga and Cortland counties Jan. 6.
Formally called the Cortland-Onondaga Regional Solid Waste Partnership, Ash for Trash would allow Cortland County to dispose of about 30,000 tons of solid waste at the Onondaga County Resource Recovery Agency (OCRRA) and Covanta waste-to-energy facility in Jamesville. Onondaga County would then be allowed to truck 90,000 of ash from the waste-to-energy (WTE) plant to Cortland’s landfill.
Onondaga County County Legislator Pat Kilmartin said the legislature was no longer considering building a landfill at Van Buren’s Site 31 as an alternative to Ash for Trash.
“There is not before us any kind of issue or resolution regarding any kind of landfill,” Kilmartin said. “The purpose for the meeting is to address the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.”
Area residents and government officials expressed their displeasure about the idea of a landfill in Van Buren. Van Buren Supervisor Claude Sykes read a statement from state Rep. Bill Magnarelli, who could not attend the public hearing.
“I want my position to be perfectly clear: that a landfill in Van Buren should not be an alternative now or in the future,” Magnarelli’s statement read.
Sykes said he, too, opposed the idea of a landfill being built to house raw garbage.
But it wasn’t just the proposed landfill residents objected to. Several Ash for Trash opponents who spoke at the hearing said the DEIS did not include a health impact assessment.
Physician Michael Wolfson called the WTE plant a “cancer factory” and an “unacceptable means of getting rid of trash” because of the carcinogens released during incineration.
His concerns were echoed by several residents of Jamesville, where OCRRA’s WTE plant is located. They told stories of neighbors and relatives with cancer and asked county legislators to conduct more health testing before moving forward with Ash for Trash.
“Over half the people on the street I grew up on have died of cancer over the years,” said Kim Hobart. “I feel that many people who have spoken in favor of the Ash for Trash do not live near [the WTE facility].”
Former County Legislator Vicki Baker, who backed a law banning Onondaga County from importing trash from elsewhere in 1992, said those who live near OCRRA’s incinerator have to deal with piles of litter and dangerous chemicals such as formaldehyde and hydrochloric acid polluting their environment. Baker called the Onondaga-Cortland partnership a “slippery slope” that could lead to other neighboring counties joining the agreement.
Pam Jenkins, a Cortland County resident who has been very vocal in her community’s opposition to Ash for Trash, said that, of 70 people who attended the Jan. 5 public hearing in Cortland, “not a single one spoke in favor” of the proposal.
Many supporters of Ash for Trash spoke at the Van Buren hearing.
Patricia Riley, an Onondaga County resident and maritime engineer who works in Energy Systems and Sustainability Management at Syracuse University, said the WTE process is “cleaner than backyard barbecues” or the average resident burning a barrel of trash.
“Cortland has the good sense to realize what a good thing we have going here,” Riley said. She spoke of the environmental dangers of landfills and said Ash for Trash would protect soil for agriculture by reducing the need for landfills.
Randy Wolken, president of the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), commended Covanta’s support of local businesses, “responsible and environmentally sound waste disposal” procedures and safety practices.
Mark Berger of the Onondaga County Soil and Water Conservation District also offered his support of the proposal.
“We see it as a great way to continue environmental education programs,” Berger said.
The legislature is still reviewing the DEIS and will accept written comments until 4:30 p.m. Jan. 17.
Residents may direct comments to: Jillian Blake, c/oBarton & Loguidice, D.P.C., 290 Elwood Davis Road, Box 3107, Syracuse, NY 13220 or [email protected].
Ashley M. Casey is an Eagle Newspapers reporter. She can be reached at [email protected].
