Riga officials discuss county proposal

The October 27 meeting that took place with Monroe County officials over proposed changes to the Mill Seat Landfill will likely be on the agenda for the Town of Riga on December 13.

Town Board member Pamela Moore anticipates information from the October 27 meeting to come up at the December meeting. "There haven't been any indication as to when we will vote on any proposals," she said.

A memorandum of understanding between the town and county was drafted on October 1, the town board has yet to formally approve it.

Some Riga officials and many town residents are upset that the town is considering a change to the Mill Seat Landfill host agreement package and are concerned about impacts on the community now and in the future. Some say the benefits to residents could be lucrative, but many only see the darker side of any changes to the landfill's host agreement. Heavier traffic to and from the landfill and safety concerns top the issues. However, even if monetary benefits to the community can be proven, what will happen when the landfill is "full" sooner than anticipated.

Currently, the 95-acre landfill receives waste from towns across Monroe County and the City of Rochester. That could change, however, if Riga's Town Board agrees to a proposal with the county that would allow the landfill to accept waste from both in-state and out-of-state municipalities. The "character of the waste" being brought to the landfill if the Host Agreement was modified is also under scrutiny. Presently, because Monroe County has passed laws that require recycling and special disposal of household hazardous waste, the waste going to Mill Seat is "higher quality" or "cleaner" that the municipal waste of communities that do no have such programs in place. Questions were raised, Moore said, about what out-of-county waste would do to the quality of the waste stream. County officials said they would be happy to assist adjoining counties in setting up such programs, but until that was accomplished the quality of waste coming into Mill Seat could be suspect.

Supervisor Tim Rowe had previously cited many benefits if the proposal is passed, including the town receiving a total of $38.3 million in revenue from 2005 to 2017. At the county level, the revenue could play a part in helping to close the county's budget deficit.

Potential financial benefits are short term while all potential quality of life, environmental, safety and health issues are long term and some are even permanent, Moore said. "Financial benefits need to be weighed against quality of life, environmental and health and safety issues to make a responsible and informed decision," she said. "The overwhelming plea of our citizens not to sell out our community for potential short term financial gain must be heard and seriously considered."

The proposal has upset some residents who feel the town board and county are going against their initial promise to not accept any outside garbage as stated in the Host Community Agreement which was approved when the landfill was originally opened in 1993. For many residents, the condition was a safeguard to ensuring that property values for residents living near the landfill were protected and that the county's waste needs were being met for the long term.

Moore said she was happy to see so many town residents at the October 27 meeting. She said she remains opposed to any changes in the Host Agreement. "I view the county's proposal as two issues. One relates to how government should be conducted and the other relates to specific issues regarding the landfill."

That the county withheld information from the citizens until the October meeting, Moore said, violates their constitutional rights and the open meetings act. "It was shameful that the proposal presented on October 27 was incomplete and one-sided," she said. "I'm disappointed that the county has not disclosed its long-term plans and has failed to provide facts about the health, safety, environmental and quality of life issues. All of this information should be disclosed immediately so a decision can be made in a responsible informed manner."

Moore said that citizens intuitively understand that "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."