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PINE RIDGE LANDFILL ISSUES

PINE RIDGE LANDFILL ISSUES. PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS January 15, 2008. HISTORY. 1989 - The landfill began as a borrow pit and was reopened by owner, Dale DeWitt, with a pug mill

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PINE RIDGE LANDFILL ISSUES

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  1. PINE RIDGE LANDFILL ISSUES PRESENTATION TO THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS January 15, 2008

  2. HISTORY • 1989 - The landfill began as a borrow pit and was reopened by owner, Dale DeWitt, with a pug mill • 1990 – Class III opened with no liner, no leachate collection system or gas collection system • 1994 – Sold to Orange Waste Recycling & Materials, Inc., as a C&D • 4/28/98 – Class III renewal approved • 5/19/98 – EPD requested Conditions 21-26 be deleted

  3. HISTORY • 6/2/98 – Sanifill withdrew its Class III application and said it’s not cost effective and should be closed and submitted an application for closure to the State. • 2000 – Waste Management closed the Class III section of Pine Ridge due to numerous odor complaints and as a follow-up to Sanifill’s application for closure.

  4. PRECEDENT • 545 Landfill on Avalon Road was denied to high rise • Opens up entire County to elevated landfills and adjacent/nearby applications could follow • Relieves pressure on Osceola, Lake, & Polk Counties’ landfills • No guarantee Waste Management will not request future high rise to 50 ft. – Jim Swan does not have any confirmation from corporate that they will be satisfied with 30 ft.

  5. HORIZON WEST PLAN • Could be a visual blight to parts of the Town Center • A working landfill in the area could be a deterrent to development for ten years or more

  6. PLANNING/ZONING PHILOSOPHIES • Consistency/Compatibility • Landfill is not compatible with the neighborhood • Landfill owner would profit while residential property values would stagnate • Allowing Pine Ridge to expand vertically would not be consistent with denial of 545 Landfill to high rise

  7. PLANNING/ZONING PHILOSOPHIES • DRC - Zoning cannot support any additional landfills or expansions – conflict with Horizon West & LARS and there is an overconcentration of such landfills in West Orange County.

  8. AESTHETICS • Current berms are inconsistent with the neighborhood, let alone a 30 ft. one • Thirty-foot berm would not be fully landscaped for many years • If landfill goes to 30 feet, a berm would need to be 40 feet to hide the view of equipment working on top. • No matter how attractively landscaped, Landfill would be topographically inconsistent with neighborhood, FOREVER

  9. AESTHETICS • Road litter is not picked up monthly or bi-monthly, let alone the REQUIRED weekly basis – some pieces lay there for months • Visual buffer is not maintained at all times – stated there would be 100% opacity for a minimum of 8 feet high • Operations can be seen from Phil C. Peters, Black Bear Lane, and south Rex Road

  10. ODORS • Still offensive • Community has endured odors for years • OC monthly inspections not always timely to catch the odors • Residents are discouraged by calling about odors when positive results are not forthcoming.

  11. ODORS • Requirement to expand flare system to 10 acres requested to be removed by Anna Hacha-Long, O.C. EPD, 5/19/98, without our knowledge. WHY? • Hydrogen sulfide escaping from beneath the capped Class III has killed trees nearby • Hydrogen sulfide: listed as hazardous substance & waste by EPA; flammable gas & poison by DOT – considered a carcinogen

  12. ODORS • Exposure can cause serious health problems • Residents near the landfill - especially asthmatics – have experienced respiratory problems

  13. TRAFFIC • Current traffic: Speeding trucks, Overturned trucks, Spilled loads, Pet/Livestock road kills • Human fatalities • Loud “Jake brakes” • Profusion of flat tires • Flying debris from trucks come close to hitting vehicles following behind

  14. TRAFFIC • Truckers still sneak through side roads, tearing them up and putting local residents in danger • Truckers are rarely caught on side roads and are rarely reported speeding, because it’s just about impossible to catch up to them to get a license number

  15. “FOREIGN” TRUCKS • Waste Management stated at 9/10/06 meeting with AHPOA that 70% of waste coming in was from outside Orange Co. • As of 8/07, 100% is coming from inside Orange Co.???

  16. CONTAMINATION/SAFETY • No process is in place to notify residents • Public records kept, but information must be sought • Must one be a scientist to understand report? • No fire hydrants at site & landfill is beyond the recommended 2.5 miles of Fire Rescue per O.C. Comp Plan

  17. PROPERTY VALUES • Black Bear Lane - 16 Parcels border landfill – 7 for sale, 8th sold after 520 days • 2 lots on market over 365 days • 1 lot on market over 180 days • 9815 Black Bear on market 415 days • 9316 Black Bear on market 83 days • 9124 Black Bear new listing • Phil C. Peters • 10 acre parcel reduced from $975,000 to $599,000 on market for 614 days • 17483 on market over 600 days

  18. PROCEDURES • Special exceptions are meant to be special • Special exceptions are meant to enhance matters of public policy • Special exceptions meant to enhance business profits are a distortion of their intent

  19. PROCEDURES • The post-closure plan is to be constructed progressively as the site is closed; however, they are still accepting waste, so no closure procedures have begun. • Permit #94-F13-6000 – “offsite migration of odors…are not permitted.” Yet it continues. • No follow through to ensure well-being of neighbors. • Landfills in the area were supposed to provide traffic police; however, Waste Mgmt says they cannot pay a police officer directly and the Homeowners would need to hire them and then be reimbursed by Waste Management.

  20. MISINFORMATION • Waste Management states there aren’t other landfills to replace them if they have to close; Research shows there are 10 landfills in Lake Co, 2 in Osceola, and 1 or more in Polk • Waste Management states that they are needed by the cities and Disney; Research shows: • Winter Garden uses Orange Co.’s landfill • Oakland uses the Keene Rd. landfill • Ocoee’s waste also goes to Keene Rd. • Disney uses the Landfill on Schofield Road - Pine Ridge is a last choice due to their prices

  21. MISINFORMATION • Waste Management quotes 23% growth by 2015; Woods & Poole projects 17.5% by 2015 • Waste Management states it will turn landfill over to Orange Co. for a park; Orange County states they probably won’t use it as a park due to liability issues • Waste Management states this is a new management team that will be different; history shows that nothing has changed

  22. MISINFORMATION • Waste Management states that area houses sold get 96% of their asking price; realtor’s facts show they get 89.8% of their initial asking price, after an average of 240 days on the market • Waste Management states haul route included SR 429 to Avalon Rd to McKinney to Rex; however, many of the trucks do not use the 429, but use Marsh Rd, 192 and Colonial Drive, along with the full length of Avalon Road

  23. MISINFORMATION • In their Demonstration of Need, they say they could handle 1,100 tons/day & it would give them a life expansion of 7-10 years; however, in Waste Management’s Exec. Summary, they state they handle 300-500 tons/day, which means the expansion could go on for 14-20 years or longer • Waste Management states if they close, trucks will have to drive to Orange County’s C&D facility; however, trucks can use closer landfills in Lake, Polk, and Osceola Counties, most of which are closer than east O.C.’s facility

  24. MISINFORMATION • Waste Mgmt states they will meet the need of all new construction in the area; however, research shows Pine Ridge’s rates are higher than other landfills and not always the first choice • Waste Management’s “Statement of Need” is need from their perspective, not necessarily facts and we should not base compatibility on a subjective document.

  25. APPLICATION IS INAPPROPRIATE • State permit application of 6/9/04 shows permitted capacity would be reached in 1.93 yrs. – giving the impression that full capacity would have been reached by late 2006 or early 2007 • Original permit was said to be adequate when issued • Other counties have available landfills • Incompatible with neighborhood • Unfair to everyone except the operator

  26. PHILOSOPHY Enough is enough! We have battled with landfill issues since 1989 – 18 years and will have to live with it FOREVER Request for Expansion Permit should be denied

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