Report: Carroll should invest in its
landfill
Mike Silvestri, The Examiner
2008-02-21
08:00:00.0
Current rank: # 265 of 9,045
BALTIMORE -
Carroll's waste-disposal system falls below par, but it could create an
economic boon if the county invests in it, a new report says.
Richard
Anthony, who runs a San Diego-based
waste-consulting company, agreed with the county's Environmental Advisory
Council, saying Carroll should take the money it would put into a
waste-to-energy incinerator and instead sink it into its landfill.
"If the government recognizes that it's a weak landfill system, it
would create about 400 [composting and recycling] jobs," said Anthony, who
has spent the past four months studying Carroll's waste programs.
Anthony, who is also studying waste programs in Los Angeles
and Austin,
Texas, said the county could bring in $12 million every year if it
decided to compost and recycle material that is otherwise tossed into
landfills.
"It would be regional, but a lot could happen in Carroll
County if they wanted to invest in composting and those kinds of
things," he said.
Another $23 million would be saved each year in the amount of natural
resources that would be salvaged through recycling and composting, Anthony
said.
"They have a basic infrastructure set up to do a zero-waste program,"
Anthony said. "But they really hadn't taken the next step."
Anthony recommended that the county require its trash haulers to offer
recycling services, contract companies to do mass composting and educate
the public to recycle more.
Carroll most recently tried to make recycling simpler for residents,
offering single-stream recycling that allows residents to mix paper,
plastic and glass recyclable materials. The county's Public Works
Department supports partnering with Frederick
County to build the state's fourth waste-to-energy incinerator, which
would cost more than $320 million.
Commissioners from both counties are to meet next week. The county
contracted Anthony for $15,000 at the environmental panel's request.
"This burning plant, that's absolutely nuts," Anthony said. "It's all
their resources that are being squandered when they do this."
msilvestri@no.address