LANDFILL WANTS MORE

February 7, 2013

Eve Mishou of Coventry questions state officials about the NEWSVT permit request. Photo by Christopher Roy

COVENTRY – A dozen or so area residents met at the Coventry Community Center Wednesday to talk about a New England Waste Service of Vermont (NEWSVT) permit application to increase the amount of trash it accepts.
The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, part of the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR), conducted the meeting.
NEWSVT wants to increase its daily tonnage from 2,500 to 5,000 with an annual limit of 600,000 tons. The facility’s permit now limits annual tonnage to 370,000.
NEWSVT has permit amendments pending with the ANR. One is for recirculation of leachate at the landfill and the other for increased tonnage.
Jeff Bordeau, ANR environmental analyst, said the landfill might not use all of the tonnage allowed in the new permit. He said NEWSVT applied for more tonnage in case of another catastrophe with a lot of building damage like what Tropical Storm Irene caused. The state, he said, allowed the landfill to over its limitations following the storm. There is also the possibility that other landfills in the state will close, Bordeau said.
For more of this story, see Friday's edition of the Newport Daily Express for Feb. 8, 2013.