Pa. DEP approves expansion of landfill
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has approved an expansion of the Rolling Hills Landfill in Earl Township.
The Delaware County Solid Waste Authority, the landfill’s owner, wanted to increase the facility’s capacity, not by dumping trash on additional land but by building higher berms around the landfill and putting trash in empty airspace on the 162 acres designated for waste disposal by DEP.
Delaware County sends its trash in the form of ash to the landfill. According to the solid waste authority, about 400,000 tons of commercial and residential trash annually are processed at an incinerator, with the ash
residue shipped to Rolling Hills.
In 2018, Berks County residential, commercial and industrial trash accounted for 51% of the trash (nonash) accepted in the landfill, 19% of the total received. Also, 35% of the total loads received at the landfill are from Berks, according to comments submitted in 2019.
The DEP approval allows the landfill to add 8.8 million cubic yards of disposal volume and more than 10 years of waste disposal capacity to the landfill. Without the expansion, the landfill was expected to reach capacity by 2025. The expansion will not increase the currently permitted maximum elevation, disposal area footprint, property boundary or daily volumes of waste accepted, according to DEP.
The authority applied for expansion in November 2018, leading to many objections from residents and leaders of nearby communities. A hearing in March 2019 drew scores of objections about truck traffic and environmental nuisances of odors, mud and dust, noise and litter. Residents and leaders of nearby Boyertown and Oley Township said they wanted to see the permit denied so that the landfill would have to close sooner.
Boyertown has been trying to revive its downtown with the Colebrookdale Railroad, the Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles and a shopping district. Leaders said the constant trash truck traffic over Route 73 has stymied efforts to attract business and tourists.
Since that meeting, Boyertown Council President Frank Deery said the borough had been negotiating with the solid waste authority.
Negotiations centered around Boyertown receiving a fee based on the tonnage in the trucks, similar to but less than what Earl Township and Berks County get.
“That didn’t fly with them at all,” Deery said.
Ultimately, the borough said it would not oppose nor support the expansion. The solid waste authority agreed to pay $75,000 a year for the next 10 years to Boyertown. It was under no legal obligation to pay anything, Deery noted.
The money will be used to upgrade four traffic signals on Route 73, covering three-quarters of the costs for better traffic control, Deery said.
“I wish there was another way that we could keep the traffic from coming through here,” Deery said, adding that the town has worked hard to be vibrant and move forward. “I think we did the best we could do. Really, the solid waste authority was not obligated to do anything for us. I’m happy to be able to make the improvement.”
Mayor Marianne Deery, Frank’s wife, said she opposed the expansion but was unable to stop it.
“There was no way to beat them (solid waste authority),” she said. “We have come to an agreement to make travel safer for our residents.”
DEP concluded that the agreement partially mitigated the impact of the landfill expansion “since the traffic impacts exist with the current landfill operations and will increase with the expansion due to the additional construction and material hauling vehicles.”
“DEP considered all submitted comments and concerns, and after a thorough review of the application and related information, determined the regulatory requirements for approval have been met,” said DEP Southcentral Regional Director Rod Nesmith in a news release. “We appreciate the efforts made by all concerned parties in reaching a final agreement on the issues that were raised.”
Kevin Murphy, president of Berks County Community Foundation, was among those who objected to the expansion. He said DEP’s decision was unfortunate, noting that the county is home to several landfills that take out-of-county trash.
“At some point we have to decide how long Berks County wants to be the dumping point for other communities,” Murphy said.
He said the truck traffic was a significant barrier to small businesses in Boyertown.
The larger issue involved in the expansion approval, Murphy said, is the county’s dependence on tipping and host fees from the trash disposal industry. He advocated for more options such as trash incineration and looking for ways to reduce trash that goes to the landfill.
“But we’ve kind of come to like those tipping fees,” Murphy said.
Benefits include fees
In granting the expansion, DEP weighed the economic benefits of the landfill against the harms raised in public comment sessions.
Berks will gain almost $16 million over 10 years from landfill tipping and host fees, according to DEP’s analysis. That’s $2 per ton for waste accepted outside of Berks, which amounts to approximately $15.6 million over the expansion life. Also, the county receives $0.10 per ton for waste accepted from outside of Berks up to $300,000.
Pennsylvania stands to gain $20 million over 10 years. The Growing Greener Fund will get $4 a ton, excluding municipal waste incinerator ash and waste for alternate daily cover. That’s about $11.5 million over the expansion life. It will also receive recycling fee of $2 a ton, excluding municipal waste incinerator ash, which is about $5.8 million over the expansion. The Pennsylvania Post-Closure Fund will get $0.25 a ton, or about $2.3 million over 10 years.
The solid waste authority pays $3 per ton to Earl Township and would continue throughout the life of the expansion. The resulting benefit to the host municipality would be about $27.9 million. Township residents also receive free waste disposal.
DEP also considered the purchase of equipment, goods and services. The authority has routinely bought equipment, materials, and services from local vendors for operational needs at the landfill. During the expansion period, the authority is expected to spent $12 million on fuel, oil, lubricants, heavy equipment and equipment maintenance.
The annual payroll of the landfill is $1,098,000 and sustains the employment of about 22 positions for $11.5 million over the expansion life plus $1.4 million in payroll taxes.
DEP accepted the proposed mitigations to the minor environmental harms of landfill nuisances of odors, mud and dust, noise, vectors and litter because the authority said it will continue to employ the existing nuisance control plan at the landfill.
Frank Deery said the truck traffic does hold back Boyertown but that people would continue to work to make the borough vibrant.
“We’re going to keep right on trying,” Deery said. “We love our town and we’re going to keep right on trucking.”