Landfill expansion is heated topic in Pennsylvania

A late December township government meeting in Eastern Pennsylvania, near Allentown and Bethlehem in that state, hosted a debate regarding the merits of expanding a landfill situated in the township.

Opponents of the expansion contributed to filling a meeting room, according to the SauconSource.com website, which reported on the late December Lower Saucon Township Council meeting.

According to the website, a representative from Toronto-based Waste Connections Inc., which operates the landfill, stressed that portraying the landfill as hazardous is inaccurate. “Comprehensive state and federal regulations that govern municipal waste landfills have been carefully crafted and are revised as new technology develops to minimize the impact on surrounding communities. We are not permitted to and do not accept hazardous waste,” the SauconSource quotes David Pannucci of Waste Connections as saying.

Critics, however, pointed to heavy truck traffic, landfill odors and a potential growing township dependence on tipping fee revenue reasons for opposition to the expansion.

According to the online report, the township’s next meeting is Tuesday evening, Jan. 3.