[SustainableTompkins] Water Rights and Land Fill Effects

[Katie Quinn-Jacobs]

Hi Jan,

Regarding Seneca Meadows, aka Mount Trashmore, the site is engineered 
with an impermeable layering system which seals the landfill off from 
the groundwater that flows into Cayuga lake.  Redundancy is built into 
the engineering plan, which is really state-of-the-art in waste fill 
management.  The landfill hosts an annual open house every fall and 
tours are available any time throughout the year, if you want to learn more.

The issue of the trucks on 89 is problematic.  The plan was to have 
trucks take the Thruway to Seneca Falls, but as fares have gone up on 
the highway, drivers are taking the secondary routes to save costs.  I 
think some citizen advocacy could probably be used to reset the 
expectations there.

Whether Seneca Falls should be a regional landfill brings up a larger 
question:  where do our large cities put their waste?  Regional 
landfills situated off a major highway with sealed layers to protect 
groundwater is the current answer.  But for those living near the 
landfill this solution seems like urban exploitation of a rural resource 
(space), which the monetary incentive is supposed to compensate the 
community for.  Maybe that's not a fair trade?

Also, did you know that the methane produced from Seneca Meadows is 
going to be used to heat greenhouses?  I believe that program is going 
live this year.

Best,

Katie Q-J



Jan Quarles wrote:
> I'm concerned about the land fill(s) surrounding Cayuga Lake, and their 
> effects on our water quality. We have one of NY's largest right here in 
> Seneca County. You can't miss it on your way up to the NY Thruway; it's a 
> giant mountain. It's euphemistically called "Seneca Meadows," but us locals 
> refer to it as "Mount Trashmore." Seneca Falls gets big bucks for importing 
> tons of garbage daily from PA, NJ, MA and NYC. Seeing all these huge trucks 
> on Rte 89 every day, I got concerned about all this unfiltered garbage 
> coming into our region. It's enough of a challenge to deal with our own 
> garbage! I am especially concerned because we pump water directly from the 
> lake, and use it to water our big organic veggie garden. When I read last 
> Spring that they're expanding Mt. Trashmore, I contacted the Cayuga Lake 
> Watershed Network (CLWN) to see if Sharon Anderson (Steward of CLWN) knew 
> anything about its effect on Cayuga Lake. She wrote back that it's being 
> monitored by the EPA. This doesn't satisfy me, though, because we all know 
> that the Bush Admin. appointed the foxes to watch the hen houses. Does 
> anyone know about any info or citizen action on this issue?
>
> I also asked Sharon about the issue of WATER RIGHTS  -- i.e., the 
> probability that private companies like CocaCola will try to purify and sell 
> bottled water en masse from the lake, as companies are already doing in Lake 
> Michigan and in thousands of towns in America. She said the CLWN doesn't get 
> involved with that aspect of water. I think there's some action on the State 
> level -- some proposed legislation to pre-empt private ownership of our 
> watershed, which, in my mind, belongs to us all as "the commons." I'm part 
> of "Back To Democracy" (based in Trumansburg) and we'd like to convene a 
> public meeting about water rights, as well as the effects of the land fill 
> and all this imported garbage on the lake, so if anyone has info on local 
> people who are working on these problems, it would be great connect with 
> them. One issue for citizens who surround the lake is: Why should Seneca 
> Falls benefit financially while our bodies pay the price?
>
> I saw a recent article in the Ithaca Times about a group of citizens 
> (including Robert Barton) who are mobilizing to address their concerns about 
> the spreading of tons of sludge on our region's farmlands.
>
> I am grateful to be part of a concerned community and to be able to 
> communicate through this list serve. It's a wonderful means by which we can 
> exercise our right to assemble in order to promote sustainability!
>
> - Jan
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Joel and Sarah Gagnon" <Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com>
> To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" 
> <sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org>
> Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:46 PM
> Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] why save water?
>
>
>   
>> The city water source issue is more complicated than implied. Six Mile
>> Creek water is often turbid. The chemicals used to clear the water have an
>> associated environmental impact from their production and then disposal.
>> That needs to be weighed against the energy cost of pumping lake water
>> uphill to storage. Either way, conservation reduces environmental impact.
>>
>> Joel
>>     
>
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