Old Town landfill opponents may get hearing

AUGUSTA – Residents opposed to the West Old Town Landfill may get their way after all. The Legislative Council, made up of leaders from both the Senate and the House, voted 7-2 on Tuesday to allow an after-deadline bill that mandates a formal public hearing on the issue.

The bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Joanne Twomey, D-Biddeford, is slated eventually to go before the Natural Resources Committee.

Twomey, a member of that committee, said she anticipated receiving a draft of the bill by Wednesday afternoon but was unsure when it would be heard.

“It’s a first step in keeping the debate alive and demanding that the people have their day,” Twomey said on Wednesday. “It was rumored this morning that the powers that be were very upset that the bill was allowed in.”

The three-way deal among the state, Georgia-Pacific Corp. and Casella Waste Systems Inc. was designed to help keep the Old Town paper mill open, while also creating an answer to the state’s waste disposal dilemma.

The mill is to use the $25 million it will receive from the landfill sale to build a biomass boiler to cut energy costs, which in turn will allow the mill to remain open.

“I am extremely disappointed with the legislative leadership,” G-P controller Rick Douglas said. “This DEP [Department of Environmental Protection] permit process has been following the rules and regulations of the state and this legislation is attempting to change those rules in the middle of a process.”

DEP tentatively approved the proposed West Old Town Landfill amendment application on Feb. 17. DEP Commissioner Dawn Gallagher expects to announce her final decision on April 9.

We The People, a group opposed to and seeking more information on the deal, has hired environmental lawyer Marcia Cleveland of Brunswick to represent their interests.

Cleveland was not available for comment on Wednesday, but submitted a legal request for a formal public hearing to the DEP on Monday, according to Debbie Gibbs, a member of We The People.

Gibbs, an Alton resident, has been actively seeking a formal public hearing since she first learned about the landfill deal a few months ago.

Residents who oppose the deal are angered that they have been denied a formal public hearing and are still pushing to get one.

Gallagher could not be reached for comment Wednesday but has denied all requests for a formal public hearing on the issue, saying that the DEP holds formal public hearings only when credible conflicting information needs to be sorted before a final decision can be reached.

Twomey disagrees and feels that residents deserve a formal public hearing so that their concerns will be properly documented.

“This is one of the largest projects in the state of Maine,” she said. “There has been no [similar] project that has not had an adjudicatory process, and this should be treated the same way.”

Douglas fears that requests for a formal hearing will slow the process down and could potentially hurt the mill.

“This has been a thorough regulatory process,” he said. “It’s been a more than thorough environmental process and these delays aren’t necessary, and they pose significant risks to the mill’s future.”

It will take nine to 12 months to build the boiler once construction begins. The DEP air quality permit for the boiler is now in draft form, and Douglas said he expects a final decision by early April.

Gallagher announced earlier this week that she has extended the public comment period on the draft decision for the landfill to 5 p.m. Friday, March 26. She plans to announce her final decision on the landfill application April 9.

More information on the landfill, as well as a copy of the draft decision, can be found at www.MaineDEP.com.

Comments on the draft decision should be addressed to Cyndi Darling, Maine DEP, 106 Hogan Road, Bangor 04401.