Well, here we go. Tomorrow, the Humboldt County Commissioners have an opportunity to re-visit the 5-year extension of the conditional use permit granted Jungo Land Investments (Recology) to build the Jungo Road Landfill. Bob Dolan and Massey Mayo are on the agenda to appeal the extension granted by the Regional Planning Commission on February 11, 2010. Information on the meeting is at this link: http://bit.ly/aMJyzV (there are documents related to the hearing under the 1:30 agenda item).

Vonnegut ChurchWhile I follow this project, I continue to be astonished at how many local officials, agencies, as well as state and federal agencies, take a "not my problem, another agency handles that I'm sure" approach to the Jungo Road Landfill. As a result, many issues remain unanswered and the permitting process just keeps rolling along costing time, as well as both taxpayer and Recology dollars.

However, perhaps naively so, I harbor both a hope and an expectation the Commissioners will stop this project tomorrow. Hope given that the approach to this project seems obviously and woefully flawed with no fact-basis on environmental risks or independent look at any economic value. Hope soars as I believe these issues would be obvious to the Commissioners as well.

If you take a look at the process Yuba City and Recology are following around the expansion of the Wheatfield landfill in California, you see some startling contrasts compared to the approach in Humboldt County (article referenced at http://bit.ly/c5VONc).

While I'm not an advocate, one way or other on the Wheatfield landfill expansion, I have observed there appears to be quite a bit more diligence in the Yuba City approach for a much smaller project with some recycling potential compared to Jungo Road.

Expansion of the Wheatfield landfill involves building a quarter mile rail road track spur from San Francisco to the landfill. Yuba City officials hired an independent firm to perform an environmental impact review on this rail spur BEFORE issuing a conditional use permit. Recology will reimburse Yuba City for this review.

In Humboldt County, no environmental impact study has been required prior to issuing a conditional use permit for the Jungo Road landfill project. The Regional Planning Commission would not add it as a condition during the 2/11/10 meeting, and Recology noted they would not have one done. In fact, the conditional use permit was issued when only one landfill was allowed in Winnemucca, per code.

Yuba City and Recology officials will hold a series of public meetings about the landfill expansion. There had been multiple requests in Humboldt County for public meetings about the landfill. None occurred with local officials. The NDEP did conduct one in August, 2009, regarding Air Quality permitting (questions from the public were not answered until March, 7 months later, when the permit was issued).

Recology plans to ship 400,000 tons of waste over 10 years as part of the Wheatland landfill expansion. Recology will ship 98,800,000 tons of waste over 95 years to Jungo Road. (1,040,000 tons per year based on 4000 tons a day,5 days a week for 95 years).

Much of the waste going to the Wheatland expansion will be green compostable waste that will be diverted to local agriculture at the landfill.All of the waste Recology plans to ship to Jungo Road is non-recyclable. It will include asbestos, waste sludge and tires.

One would think we could do with a bit more organized religion around the Jungo Road landfill project in Humboldt County.

My hopes the Commissioners will revoke the permit extension were a bit dashed when I read the request from Recology legal counsel, supported by the Humboldt County District Attorney, to recuse Commissioner Fransway given he has publicly noted he is against the project. While I'm sure someone somewhere can debate the legal positioning around this and there will be high drama tomorrow, I continue to wonder when officials will get down to the real issue here and address it.

As Kurt Vonnegut so directly put it "I really wonder what gives us the right to wreck this poor planet of ours." Certainly we have no right to do so because we are fearful of lawsuits or find it easier to pass the buck to someone else to dig up the facts and ask the tough questions.

Vonnegut Apology to the Future

Help stop the Jungo Road Landfill.

For more information on NAG: www.nevadansagainstgarbage.com
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by Tracy Austin