SERF’s up

Hampden is a small town facing a big decision. The choice it makes regarding the proposed expansion of the Sawyer Environmental Recovery Facility — the SERF landfill — will have a profound effect upon not just this community but upon the entire state for years to come.

The town council begins this process tonight. The board can block the expansion of the landfill, which has roughly one more year of capacity, by refusing to amend the zoning ordinance. It can approve the planning board’s recommended amendment, which could result in about another 15 years of solid-waste disposal. It can approve the company’s preference, good for an estimated 22 years. The council can make its decision on the spot, it can take a couple of weeks to mull over the public comment, sure to be considerable, it can put the matter out to referendum. Whatever action the board ultimately takes, it can be reasonably well assured that a citizen-initiated referendum will follow.

As the town delves in, it must first decide exactly what it is deciding. If the central concern is the nuts-and-bolts of being host to a landfill — groundwater protection, noise, odor, property values — those are issues that can be negotiated and addressed. If, after 25 years as a “dump town,” Hampden simply does not want that distinction any longer, there is nothing to negotiate, nothing to address, other than preparing for life after SERF.

SERF has a good environmental record and the new parent company, Casela Waste Management, has a steadily improving record of responding to community concerns. Under either expansion model, the facility’s already considerable groundwater protection and monitoring systems will be substantially enhanced and a primary source of odor — the leachate pond — will be eliminated. The company has just completed a study of property values and will initiate a program to guarantee fair-market price for neighboring homes. The annual host-community fee will be increased, the town’s own considerable waste-management costs will be covered, tax revenue will grow with the relocation of a trucking operation. The company even has agreed to a council subcommittee’s request that it help build a new fire station and athletic field.

If the expansion moves forward, the town will be in a position to deal further. It should do so, but on issues directly related to landfill operation. To control odor, waste now is covered with inert material at the end of each day, sometimes more often, depending upon weather conditions and the type of waste, such as sewerage sludge from the Bangor treatment plant. If odor is indeed a problem, the town can insist on a more aggressive schedule. The landfill is in a noisy neighborhood, what with I-95 and a 24-hour truck stop, but if SERF is a noticable contributor, hours of operation can be restricted and sound barriers demanded.

And so on. For every specific technical problem, there is good chance of a remedy. Not so if the problem is one of image, if Hampden prefers to be known as a town with a closed landfill instead of an active one. Opponents, those who believe Hampden will be better off with SERF buttoned up for all time, must also address the significant monetary loss closure would bring about. The day of financial reckoning cannot be put off until the next town meeting or school budget vote.

Opponents will take little comfort from this, but Hampden has performed an extremely valuable public service by hosting SERF and it will perform an even greater one by allowing it to expand. Maine has only two commercial landfills; with an expanded SERF, the state has about 10 years remaining capacity, only three or four without. Yes, the state has identified a potential replacement at Carpenter Ridge in Lincoln, but there is a chasm between potentiality and actuality. If all goes smoothly, a landfill at Carpenter Ridge could be up and running in three or four years. Things never go smoothly in the landfill-siting business, however. Environmental groups are sure to object to the creation of a new one when an existing one could be expanded. Folks in Lincoln are sure to have an opinion or two on the matter. Without an expanded SERF, Maine — especially Eastern Maine — could face substantially higher disposal costs and have one more reason why it does not prosper.

But Maine cannot tell Hampden what to do, Hampden cannot be made to accept something it may find totally unacceptable. If practical problems regarding this expansion can be solved, Maine can only ask Hampden, and SERF, to try.