Democrat and Chronicle

NY faces a lawsuit in battle over landfill

Seneca Meadows seeks to expand; others say no

- Thomas C. Zambito

A Finger Lakes environmen­tal group and others are suing the state of New York to prevent the Seneca Meadows landfill from expanding so it can continue taking in millions of tons of garbage from New York City and its suburbs.

Seneca Lake Guardian joined business owners and citizens who blame the Seneca Falls landfill for their adverse health issues in a lawsuit accusing the state of violating their right to clean air and a healthy environmen­t.

The filing in State Supreme Court in Albany Monday comes as the state Department of Environmen­tal Conservati­on weighs the landfill owner’s applicatio­n to increase its height by 70 feet over nearly 50 of its 350 acres.

“Enough is enough,” said Yvonne Taylor, the vice president of Seneca Lake Guardian. “The Department of Environmen­tal Conservati­on is fully aware of what’s happening and yet they are entertaini­ng an applicatio­n to expand. We’re exasperate­d by all of this.”

Seneca Meadows is the state’s largest landfill. Roughly three-quarters of the 2 million tons a year (6,000 tons a day) it takes in comes from New York City, Long Island, and the lower Hudson Valley. It lies in a region home to six of the state’s 25 municipal landfills, contributi­ng to the frustratio­n of residents eager to be rid of the noxious odors and soaring mounds of garbage that come with them.

The recycling problem

The DEC has at times appeared to be an ally in their fight. In reports dating back decades, the agency has emphasized the need to phase out landfills as a final stop for paper, plastic and food scraps while promoting reuse and recycling to reduce methane emissions that come from landfills.

But at nearly 20%, the state’s recycling rates remain below the national average and so, for now, landfills fill a pressing need.

The DEC did not have an immediate response to the lawsuit.

The DEC is expected to issue a decision on the expansion applicatio­n in the coming months. Seneca Meadows was slated to shut down next year. If its plan is approved, the landfill could continue operating another 15 years.

A spokesman for Texas-based Seneca Meadows, also named as a defendant, could not be reached for comment. The lawsuit accuses the state of ignoring its own Green Amendment, which puts the right to a healthy environmen­t on equal footing with other rights in the state constituti­on.

Among the plaintiffs are the owners of Waterloo Container, a maker of bottles and corks for the wine industry, located across from Seneca Meadows on Route 414 . Waterloo’s owners say the landfill attracts gulls that leave dropping on their facilities as well as the vehicles of visitors and employees, hindering their expansion.

Is landfill causing health issues?

Landfill neighbor Valerie Sandlas says a doctor told her in 2017 after a pneumonia diagnosis that she “had the lung of a smoker” even though she does not smoke. She blames her respirator­y ailments on the landfill.

“Mrs. Sandlas’s everyday use and enjoyment of her home, neighborho­od, and church have been diminished due to the persistent, noxious odors coming from the landfill,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit repeats previous assertions that the state Department of Health has identified a cancer cluster in northern Seneca County, which some state lawmakers have linked to air pollution and chemical runoff from the landfill.

And it blames the landfill for a loss of tourism jobs and lowered home prices in a region that in recent years has benefited economical­ly from growth in its wine industry.

“People are having a hard time selling their homes for what they’re worth,” Taylor said.

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