DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARADVERTISER.COM
PVT Land Co. Ltd. drafted an environmental impact statement in July in hopes of expanding its construction debris recycling and landfill operation. Debris was sorted at the landfill last week.
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“We need a landfill, but can we have it someplace else?” That’s the fundamental question posed by Ed Werner, a neighbor of the Nanakuli landfill that its owners want to expand.
PVT Land Co. Ltd., operator of the private landfill for construction and demolition debris — the only one of its kind on Oahu — anticipates it could run out of room in roughly seven years, depending on construction activity. So it wants to develop 75 acres of a 179-acre adjacent parcel as a new landfill to meet demand for the next 30 years.
There’s no question that Oahu will need such a landfill for the indefinite future; not everything can be recycled, and construction won’t stop.
It’s also understandable that Nanakuli residents are upset with the suggestion that they continue to bear the burden of the landfill for everyone else.
But other options appear to be limited, and poor. If PVT closes, the city would have to develop a new one, with all the costs and complications of finding an acceptable location, developing, managing and operating the facility — perhaps within seven years. Or it could pay a fortune to ship the debris off-island, assuming someplace else would take it. Confidence is low.
Also, the 11 alternative locations considered in PVT’s draft environmental impact statement pose some significant problems. Some are too close to wetlands or underlying fresh water supplies; others are prone to flooding and runoff issues.
In the absence of a better alternative, PVT would need to fulfill its promises to alleviate the impacts of an expanded operation — rising dust, leachate (water percolating through landfill debris) and traffic. The state also can make PVT’s leachate and groundwater reports available online. PVT’s neighbors deserve at least that much.
