Maine city proposes digging up landfill to transfer waste to new site

The city of Old Town, Maine, filed an application with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on July 19 requesting permission to transfer the waste from an inactive construction and demolition (C&D) landfill in the city and move it to the Juniper Ridge Landfill several miles down the road.

As reported by the Bangor Daily News, Old Town has made the request in an effort to avoid the liability associated with capping the unlined C&D landfill and exposing the soil and groundwater to potentially toxic chemicals.

If the plan is approved, large excavators would be deployed to unearth up to 1,000 tons of old C&D debris and load it into trucks, which would then travel approximately 5 miles to the state-of-the-art Juniper Ridge Landfill.

Beyond the environmental reasons, there is a financial incentive for the city to close the inactive landfill, as well. Through a program administered by the DEP, the city could be awarded 75 percent of the funding needed to close the landfill, which totals close to $350,000. The funding is part of the state’s efforts to close landfills in the state that pose environmental threats to the public.  

If green lit by the DEP, the project would be the first instance in the state where waste was transferred between sites in such a manner.

“This is pretty unique, to want to essentially dig [the waste] up and bring it to another landfill,” said Molly King, a project manager with Maine DEP’s Solid Waste Landfills, Licensing & Compliance department, according to the Bangor Daily News.

Before the plan can be granted approval, the DEP needs to review the application, the engineering plan and conduct a geological review of the site. The DEP has a full year to complete its assessment.   

Per Old Town’s application, the city is prepared to start work in November or December of this year to complete work early in 2022.