DEC Announces New Requirements to Improve Dunn Landfill Operations and Public Communication
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation sent this bulletin on 10/10/2019 11:07 AM EDTDEC Delivers Press Release - Information to keep you connected and informed from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation |
Share or view as a web page || Update preferences or unsubscribe |
DEC Announces New Requirements to Improve Dunn Landfill Operations and Public Communication |
State-Initiated Measures Include Enhanced Gas Collection, Daily Cover of Waste, Phasing of Waste Cell Construction, and New Complaint Hotline - (518) 292-0449Builds Upon DEC's Ongoing Monitoring and Inspections to Ensure Permit Compliance and Prevent Off-Site ImpactsNew York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos today announced the agency is initiating new operational requirements for the S.A. Dunn Landfill in Rensselaer to address potential impacts in response to community input and DEC's ongoing daily monitoring and inspections. These new requirements will further reduce the potential for odors and other off-site impacts by going beyond existing voluntary actions and will require the facility to improve the collection of gas, cover waste, and complete a new perimeter berm in order to construct a new waste cell, as well as to establish new protocols to help ensure prompt investigations upon receiving reports to a new complaint hotline. "DEC's top priority is ensuring that residents, as well as students, faculty, and staff at the Rensselaer City School campus, are not exposed to any potential health or safety hazards from the operations at the Dunn facility," Commissioner Seggos said. "We have taken this latest action to hold the landfill operators responsible for implementing additional controls that prevent odors, dust, and other potential impacts from affecting the community, while also giving us new enforcement tools if these requirements are not met." DEC issued a Department Initiated Modification (DIM) to include new specific and stringent conditions to protect public health and safety. The Dunn facility must undertake these actions in order to continue operating. The new requirements include:
DEC will continue to closely monitor operations and air quality conditions at the facility and surrounding community and will strictly oversee the implementation of the corrective actions and modifications to ensure public health and the environment are protected to the fullest extent under the law. DEC performs regular and off-hour inspections, oversees a full-time on-site monitor to monitor the facility's compliance with their permit, operates continuous Acrulog air monitoring meter readings, and examines samples of air particulate matter of 10 micrometers or less in diameter (PM10) taken by a DEC trailer at the school. |