Landfills

NPR

Cutting Landfill Methane To Fight Climate Change : NPR

A single flip-flop. An empty Chick-fil-A sandwich bag. A mattress. A sneaker, navy with a white sole. A little orange bouncy ball.

Garbage is strewn among thigh-high drifts of dirt, used to bury the filthy, weather-worn items at the Orange County Landfill in Florida and prevent the intrusion of insects, rats and pigs. Bulldozers smooth the dirt into place while tractor-trailers deliver ever more trash. Vultures and seagulls circle above. A bald eagle lands nearby.

"Anything you will see out in the real world you'll see it here," said David Gregory, manager of the solid waste division of the Orange County Utilities Department. "Because when people throw things away, this is where it comes."

All Landfills Leak, and Our Health and Environment Pay the Toxic Price | Conservation Law Foundation

All Landfills Leak, and Our Health and Environment Pay the Toxic Price | Conservation Law Foundation

There’s simply no such thing as a safe landfill. No matter how many barriers, liners, and pipes we install to try to mitigate the risk, landfills will always leak toxic chemicals into the soil and water.

So let’s not build anymore. Instead, we should solve our waste problem by instituting Zero Waste programs that save money, protect the public health and environment, and create new jobs. We know the right answer – and it’s not more leaking landfills.

Time for NY to Become the Resource Recovery State

The Divide: Time for NY to Become the Resource Recovery State

"Landfills have been the talk of the town(s) the past year. Solid waste management on all levels – local, state, national and worldwide – must be taken seriously in 2018. Municipal landfills are reaching the end of their lifespans (see the city of Albany). Privately-owned dump operators are taking in more trash than they are legally permitted to accept (see Colonie/Waste Connections, Inc.). Enormous landfills (many in southern states) that take in waste shipped from out-of-state producers are filling up at a record pace. And, according to a report by Kadir van Lohuizen in The Washington Post, β€œThe world produces more than 3.5 million tons of garbage a day – and that figure is growing.” The divide between the proposed goals set to decrease the amount of waste we produce and the actual implementation of programs to meet those goals is as deep and wide and high as Albany’s Rapp Road landfill."

What Does 100 Miles from the Rapp Road Landfill Look Like?

About a year ago, in the Capital Region Solid Waste Plan, the City of Albany proposed creating a mega-solid waste authority to manage the Solid Waste for most of the Eastern Half of New York State. The plan specifically called for creating a regional authority — to service up to nine counties, and cover an area of 100 miles from the center point of the Rapp Road Landfill.

So I decided to make a map, and run some numbers…

Along the Lake

100 square miles equals roughly 30,500 square miles, with 21,500 sq miles in New York State and 9,000 sq miles out of State — primarily Southern Vermont, but also most of Western Massachussets, roughly 3/4th of Connecicut, and part of Pennsylvania in the Poconos.

In contrast to 30,500 square miles, Adirondack Park “Blue Line” covers roughly 9,100 sq miles in NY State and the Catskill Park “Blue Line” covers roughly 1,100 sq miles. That includes all land within those parks, publicly and privately owned.

That area, within NY State, covers an area were 2,957,993 persons reported residing in the 2010 census.

That is 2.95 million people, or almost 3 million people, a population greater then Manhattan at 1.5 million persons, and even Brooklyn at 2.5 million.

While no one town or city in the proposed in Authorty is particularly large — the City of Albany is the largest population center at 97,856 followed by Colonie at 81,591, the reality is those numbers add up, when you include the 406 towns and cities in NY State that fall within the 100 mile distance from the Rapp Road Landfill.

Large Cities and Towns in Proposed Authority.

Town /City Population
Albany city 97,856
Colonie town 81,591
Schenectady city 66,135
Utica city 62,235
Troy city 50,129
Poughkeepsie town 43,341
Cortlandt town 41,592
Monroe town 39,912
Clifton Park town 36,705
Yorktown town 36,081
Guilderland town 35,303
Carmel town 34,305
Rome city 33,725
Bethlehem town 33,656
Poughkeepsie city 32,736
Warwick town 32,065
Newburgh town 29,801
Glenville town 29,480
Rotterdam town 29,094

All Towns and Cities in NY State within 100 miles of Rapp Road Landfill.

Here is entire list of towns partially or wholely contained in the proposed jurisdiction of the Albany Solid Waste Authority (including large cities and towns listed above)…

Town /City Population Area (sq mi) Pop sq/mi
Albany city 97,856 21 4659.8
Colonie town 81,591 57 1431.4
Schenectady city 66,135 10 6613.5
Utica city 62,235 16 3889.7
Troy city 50,129 11 4557.2
Poughkeepsie town 43,341 31 1398.1
Cortlandt town 41,592 49 848.8
Monroe town 39,912 21 1900.6
Clifton Park town 36,705 50 734.1
Yorktown town 36,081 39 925.2
Guilderland town 35,303 58 608.7
Carmel town 34,305 40 857.6
Rome city 33,725 75 449.7
Bethlehem town 33,656 50 673.1
Poughkeepsie city 32,736 5 6547.2
Warwick town 32,065 105 305.4
Newburgh town 29,801 46 647.8
Glenville town 29,480 50 589.6
Rotterdam town 29,094 36 808.2
East Fishkill town 29,029 57 509.3
Newburgh city 28,866 4 7216.5
Middletown city 28,086 5 5617.2
Queensbury town 27,901 64 436.0
Wallkill town 27,426 62 442.4
Wappinger town 27,048 28 966.0
Saratoga Springs city 26,586 28 949.5
New Windsor town 25,244 36 701.2
Kingston city 23,893 8 2986.6
Peekskill city 23,583 5 4716.6
Montgomery town 22,606 51 443.3
New Hartford town 22,166 25 886.6
Fishkill town 22,107 32 690.8
Niskayuna town 21,781 15 1452.1
Hyde Park town 21,571 39 553.1
Halfmoon town 21,535 33 652.6
Somers town 20,434 32 638.6
Saugerties town 19,482 67 290.8
Whitestown town 18,667 27 691.4
Amsterdam city 18,620 6 3103.3
Milton town 18,575 35 530.7
Southeast town 18,404 34 541.3
Blooming Grove town 18,028 35 515.1
East Greenbush town 16,473 24 686.4
Wilton town 16,173 35 462.1
Cohoes city 16,168 4 4042.0
La Grange town 15,730 40 393.3
Gloversville city 15,665 5 3133.0
Beacon city 15,541 4 3885.3
Thompson town 15,308 87 176.0
Stony Point town 15,059 31 485.8
Malta town 14,765 31 476.3
Moreau town 14,728 43 342.5
Glens Falls city 14,700 3 4900.0
Beekman town 14,621 30 487.4
Shawangunk town 14,332 56 255.9
New Paltz town 14,003 34 411.9
Oneonta city 13,901 4 3475.3
Goshen town 13,687 44 311.1
Kent town 13,507 43 314.1
German Flatts town 13,258 34 389.9
Wawarsing town 13,157 133 98.9
Fallsburg town 12,870 79 162.9
Schodack town 12,794 63 203.1
Kingsbury town 12,671 40 316.8
Cornwall town 12,646 28 451.6
Highlands town 12,492 33 378.5
Lewisboro town 12,411 29 428.0
Ulster town 12,327 28 440.3
Mamakating town 12,085 98 123.3
North Greenbush town 12,075 18 670.8
Patterson town 12,023 32 375.7
Chester town 11,981 87 137.7
Chester town 11,981 25 479.2
Brunswick town 11,941 44 271.4
Putnam Valley town 11,809 42 281.2
Catskill town 11,775 64 184.0
Oneida city 11,393 22 517.9
Woodbury town 11,353 37 306.8
Red Hook town 11,319 40 283.0
Lloyd town 10,863 33 329.2
Plattekill town 10,499 35 300.0
Kirkland town 10,315 33 312.6
Watervliet city 10,254 1 10254.0
Herkimer town 10,175 32 318.0
Liberty town 9,885 80 123.6
Ballston town 9,776 30 325.9
Pleasant Valley town 9,672 33 293.1
Philipstown town 9,662 51 189.5
Rensselaer city 9,392 3 3130.7
Crawford town 9,316 40 232.9
Lenox town 9,122 36 253.4
Esopus town 9,041 41 220.5
Marcy town 8,982 33 272.2
North Elba town 8,957 156 57.4
Coxsackie town 8,918 38 234.7
Marlborough town 8,808 26 338.8
Johnstown city 8,743 4 2185.8
Dover town 8,699 56 155.3
New Scotland town 8,648 57 151.7
Sand Lake town 8,530 36 236.9
Kinderhook town 8,498 32 265.6
Pawling town 8,463 45 188.1
Waterford town 8,423 7 1203.3
Stillwater town 8,287 43 192.7
Deerpark town 7,901 67 117.9
Greenfield town 7,775 67 116.0
Schaghticoke town 7,679 51 150.6
Frankfort town 7,636 36 212.1
Rhinebeck town 7,548 39 193.5
Coeymans town 7,418 53 140.0
Rochester town 7,313 89 82.2
Wawayanda town 7,266 35 207.6
Norwich city 7,190 2 3595.0
Johnstown town 7,098 71 100.0
Mount Hope town 7,018 25 280.7
Hoosick town 6,924 63 109.9
Hudson city 6,713 2 3356.5
Hamilton town 6,690 41 163.2
Cairo town 6,670 60 111.2
Granville town 6,669 56 119.1
Cobleskill town 6,625 30 220.8
Corinth town 6,531 58 112.6
Mayfield town 6,495 64 101.5
Lee town 6,486 45 144.1
Fort Edward town 6,371 27 236.0
Hurley town 6,314 35 180.4
Verona town 6,293 69 91.2
Windsor town 6,274 93 67.5
Fort Ann town 6,190 111 55.8
Westmoreland town 6,138 43 142.7
Duanesburg town 6,122 71 86.2
Rosendale town 6,075 20 303.8
Claverack town 6,021 47 128.1
Woodstock town 5,884 67 87.8
Sidney town 5,774 50 115.5
Pittstown town 5,735 64 89.6
Gardiner town 5,713 43 132.9
Saratoga town 5,674 42 135.1
Marbletown town 5,607 55 101.9
Greene town 5,604 75 74.7
Walton town 5,576 97 57.5
Amsterdam town 5,566 30 185.5
Hamptonburgh town 5,561 26 213.9
Vienna town 5,440 95 57.3
Vernon town 5,408 37 146.2
Ghent town 5,402 45 120.0
Broadalbin town 5,260 39 134.9
Eaton town 5,255 45 116.8
Colesville town 5,232 79 66.2
Oneonta town 5,229 33 158.5
Mechanicville city 5,196 0
Delhi town 5,117 64 80.0
North Salem town 5,104 22 232.0
Northumberland town 5,087 32 159.0
Ticonderoga town 5,042 88 57.3
Little Falls city 4,946 3 1648.7
Greenwich town 4,942 44 112.3
Union Vale town 4,877 37 131.8
Moriah town 4,798 71 67.6
Nassau town 4,789 45 106.4
Washington town 4,741 58 81.7
Boonville town 4,555 72 63.3
Poestenkill town 4,530 32 141.6
Trenton town 4,498 43 104.6
Minisink town 4,490 23 195.2
Amenia town 4,436 43 103.2
Olive town 4,419 65 68.0
Paris town 4,411 31 142.3
Unadilla town 4,392 46 95.5
Minden town 4,297 51 84.3
Deerfield town 4,273 33 129.5
Bethel town 4,255 90 47.3
Greenport town 4,165 20 208.3
Charlton town 4,133 32 129.2
Chatham town 4,128 53 77.9
Warrensburg town 4,094 64 64.0
Athens town 4,089 28 146.0
Sherburne town 4,048 43 94.1
Whitehall town 4,042 58 69.7
Norwich town 3,998 42 95.2
Oxford town 3,901 60 65.0
Otsego town 3,900 59 66.1
Mohawk town 3,844 35 109.8
Stanford town 3,823 50 76.5
Floyd town 3,819 34 112.3
Argyle town 3,782 57 66.4
Rockland town 3,775 95 39.7
Middletown town 3,750 97 38.7
Middleburgh town 3,746 49 76.4
Greenville town 3,739 39 95.9
Greenville town 3,739 30 124.6
Canajoharie town 3,730 43 86.7
Livingston town 3,646 38 95.9
Perth town 3,646 26 140.2
Tuxedo town 3,624 49 74.0
Copake town 3,615 42 86.1
Neversink town 3,557 86 41.4
Galway town 3,545 45 78.8
Lake George town 3,515 32 109.8
Schuyler town 3,420 40 85.5
New Baltimore town 3,370 43 78.4
Westerlo town 3,361 58 57.9
White Creek town 3,356 48 69.9
Lake Luzerne town 3,347 54 62.0
Manheim town 3,334 29 115.0
Bainbridge town 3,308 34 97.3
Palatine town 3,240 41 79.0
Hancock town 3,224 161 20.0
Schoharie town 3,205 29 110.5
Otego town 3,115 45 69.2
Shandaken town 3,085 120 25.7
Sherrill city 3,071 2 1535.5
Callicoon town 3,057 48 63.7
Milford town 3,044 47 64.8
North East town 3,031 43 70.5
Annsville town 3,012 60 50.2
Madison town 3,008 41 73.4
Davenport town 2,965 52 57.0
Guilford town 2,922 61 47.9
Stephentown town 2,903 58 50.1
Afton town 2,851 46 62.0
Stockport town 2,815 13 216.5
Berne town 2,794 64 43.7
Hunter town 2,732 90 30.4
Durham town 2,725 49 55.6
Salem town 2,715 52 52.2
Florida town 2,696 51 52.9
Knox town 2,692 41 65.7
New Berlin town 2,682 46 58.3
Delaware town 2,670 35 76.3
Northampton town 2,670 34 78.5
St. Johnsville town 2,631 17 154.8
Green Island town 2,620 0
Richmondville town 2,610 30 87.0
Russia town 2,587 60 43.1
Sangerfield town 2,561 30 85.4
Brookfield town 2,545 78 32.6
Highland town 2,530 52 48.7
Glen town 2,507 39 64.3
Roxbury town 2,502 87 28.8
Pine Plains town 2,473 31 79.8
Lumberland town 2,468 49 50.4
Laurens town 2,424 42 57.7
Franklin town 2,411 81 29.8
Sanford town 2,407 91 26.5
Johnsburg town 2,395 206 11.6
Richfield town 2,388 32 74.6
Milan town 2,370 36 65.8
Easton town 2,336 63 37.1
Bolton town 2,326 90 25.8
New Lebanon town 2,305 35 65.9
Newport town 2,302 32 71.9
Hartford town 2,269 43 52.8
Stamford town 2,267 48 47.2
Worcester town 2,220 46 48.3
Marshall town 2,131 32 66.6
Grafton town 2,130 45 47.3
Princetown town 2,115 24 88.1
Middlefield town 2,114 63 33.6
Hartwick town 2,110 40 52.8
Stockbridge town 2,103 31 67.8
Winfield town 2,086 23 90.7
Colchester town 2,077 142 14.6
Esperance town 2,076 20 103.8
Hadley town 2,048 41 50.0
Stuyvesant town 2,027 26 78.0
Crown Point town 2,024 81 25.0
Cambridge town 2,021 36 56.1
Augusta town 2,020 27 74.8
Lincoln town 2,012 25 80.5
Providence town 1,995 45 44.3
Nelson town 1,980 44 45.0
Clermont town 1,965 19 103.4
Salisbury town 1,958 108 18.1
Germantown town 1,954 13 150.3
Western town 1,951 54 36.1
Carlisle town 1,948 34 57.3
Remsen town 1,929 36 53.6
Hillsdale town 1,927 48 40.1
Oppenheim town 1,924 56 34.4
Maryland town 1,897 51 37.2
Watson town 1,881 116 16.2
Berlin town 1,880 59 31.9
Morris town 1,878 39 48.2
Hebron town 1,853 56 33.1
Sharon town 1,846 39 47.3
Rensselaerville town 1,843 62 29.7
Edmeston town 1,826 44 41.5
Webb town 1,807 484 3.7
Plymouth town 1,804 42 43.0
Jackson town 1,800 37 48.6
Butternuts town 1,786 53 33.7
Leyden town 1,785 33 54.1
North Norwich town 1,783 28 63.7
Seward town 1,763 36 49.0
Fenner town 1,726 31 55.7
Root town 1,715 51 33.6
Deposit town 1,712 44 38.9
Canaan town 1,710 36 47.5
Windham town 1,703 45 37.8
Ashland town 1,695 25 67.8
Ephratah town 1,682 39 43.1
Kortright town 1,675 62 27.0
Gallatin town 1,668 39 42.8
Coventry town 1,655 48 34.5
Schroon town 1,654 141 11.7
Austerlitz town 1,654 48 34.5
Fairfield town 1,627 41 39.7
DeRuyter town 1,589 31 51.3
Little Falls town 1,587 22 72.1
Columbia town 1,580 35 45.1
Harpersfield town 1,577 42 37.5
Ancram town 1,573 42 37.5
Wright town 1,539 28 55.0
Forestport town 1,535 78 19.7
Meredith town 1,529 58 26.4
Petersburgh town 1,525 41 37.2
West Turin town 1,524 102 14.9
Bridgewater town 1,522 23 66.2
Tusten town 1,515 48 31.6
Litchfield town 1,513 30 50.4
Fulton town 1,442 65 22.2
Jefferson town 1,410 43 32.8
Horicon town 1,389 71 19.6
Lewis town 1,382 65 21.3
Charleston town 1,373 42 32.7
Cochecton town 1,372 37 37.1
Pittsfield town 1,366 38 35.9
Springfield town 1,358 45 30.2
Indian Lake town 1,352 266 5.1
Lebanon town 1,332 43 31.0
Smithville town 1,330 50 26.6
Hamden town 1,323 60 22.1
Masonville town 1,320 54 24.4
Westport town 1,312 66 19.9
Taghkanic town 1,310 40 32.8
Gilboa town 1,307 59 22.2
Andes town 1,301 112 11.6
Smithfield town 1,288 24 53.7
Smyrna town 1,280 42 30.5
Tompkins town 1,247 104 12.0
Lyonsdale town 1,227 70 17.5
Cherry Valley town 1,223 40 30.6
Thurman town 1,219 92 13.3
Edinburg town 1,214 67 18.1
Caroga town 1,205 54 22.3
Greig town 1,199 94 12.8
Elizabethtown town 1,163 83 14.0
Summit town 1,148 37 31.0
Warren town 1,143 38 30.1
Burlington town 1,140 45 25.3
New Lisbon town 1,114 44 25.3
Keene town 1,105 156 7.1
Steuben town 1,100 42 26.2
Otselic town 1,054 38 27.7
Preston town 1,044 35 29.8
Danube town 1,039 29 35.8
Fremont town 1,008 51 19.8
Ohio town 1,002 307 3.3
Exeter town 987 32 30.8
Columbus town 975 37 26.4
Georgetown town 974 40 24.4
Broome town 973 48 20.3
Jewett town 953 50 19.1
Hampton town 938 22 42.6
Plainfield town 915 29 31.6
Kingston town 889 7 127.0
McDonough town 886 39 22.7
Westford town 868 33 26.3
Day town 856 69 12.4
Forestburgh town 819 56 14.6
Minerva town 809 160 5.1
Lexington town 805 79 10.2
Pitcher town 803 28 28.7
Lake Pleasant town 781 198 3.9
Stony Creek town 767 83 9.2
Norway town 762 35 21.8
Stark town 757 31 24.4
Clinton town 737 38 19.4
Conesville town 734 40 18.4
Long Lake town 711 449 1.6
Roseboom town 711 33 21.5
Prattsville town 700 19 36.8
Hague town 699 80 8.7
Ava town 676 37 18.3
Wells town 674 177 3.8
Dresden town 652 54 12.1
Bovina town 633 44 14.4
Stratford town 610 76 8.0
Putnam town 609 35 17.4
Pharsalia town 593 39 15.2
Denning town 551 105 5.2
Bleecker town 533 59 9.0
Newcomb town 436 233 1.9
Hope town 403 41 9.8
Lincklaen town 396 26 15.2
Blenheim town 377 34 11.1
Decatur town 353 20 17.7
Inlet town 333 66 5.0
Arietta town 304 329 0.9
Halcott town 258 23 11.2
North Hudson town 240 185 1.3
Hardenburgh town 238 80 3.0
Benson town 192 83 2.3
Morehouse town 86 194 0.4
Total 2,957,993 21,462 386.0