Time to institute a broader approach to recycling waste

Charleston County has a once in a generation opportunity to fundamentally change the way it handles garbage.

The county disposes of its solid waste in three ways: through incineration (230,000 tons), landfill disposal (308,000 tons) and recycling (132,000 tons). County Council is preparing to make decisions regarding each of these operations that will determine how garbage is handled long into the future.

The contract for the incinerator is coming up for a renewal that will extend through 2030 and cost taxpayers at least $200 million. The Bees Ferry Landfill, which absorbs the remaining trash, is nearing capacity and will need a major expansion.

This is a historic opportunity to shift away from the "burn and bury it" practices that result in a public and environmental health nuisance and shift toward a modern approach that emphasizes recycling and other waste reduction practices. It is an occasion for Charleston County to reframe a waste management problem as a resource management opportunity.

After giving the issue due consideration, the Lunz Group Sierra Club believes the county should not renew the incinerator contract and instead focus on implementing an aggressive recycling, composting and waste-reduction strategy that limits the amount of garbage taken to the landfill.

County Council has shown openness to re-evaluating current plans by announcing plans for a "green ribbon" committee and by inviting outside consultants to advise on alternatives. What council needs now is to hear from the public about the very real health concerns associated with the incinerator, which is located on the Charleston Neck in the heart of the county's population center.

Trash incineration results in tons of toxic pollutants being emitted into the air each year, among them dioxins, particulate matter and mercury, as well as lesser amounts of lead, arsenic and cadmium. Dioxins are highly toxic chemicals, which have been linked with cancer, IQ deficits, disrupted sexual development, birth defects and immune-system damage. Particulate matter has been linked with asthma, decreased lung function and other respiratory ailments, disruption of heart function and increased mortality rates.

There are no safe levels of dioxin or particulate matter. Mercury is a potent neuro-toxin that has been linked with birth defects, nerve disorders, heart failure, autism, mental retardation, seizure disorders, cerebral palsy, blindness and deafness.

Under new federal guidelines, the proposed 20-year contract with the incinerator operator will require additional technology to reduce toxic emissions. However, these changes will not eliminate the health threats the incinerator poses.

Instead of spending nearly a quarter of a billion dollars over the next 20 years to pollute our air and water, the county could invest these funds in developing an aggressive recycling, composting and waste reduction program. The majority of what we currently take to the landfill and incinerator could be redirected.

From composting food scraps and yard waste to expanded recycling of materials such as paper and cardboard, and to recycling and reuse of construction and demolition waste, we have cost effective alternatives that could eventually save county taxpayers tens of millions of dollars over the next two decades.

Communities around the country have implemented "zero waste" policies and initiatives that strive to recycle and divert upward of 75 percent of the garbage normally burned or placed in landfills. Such plans may not eliminate garbage in the near future, but they set goals that challenge the assumption that landfills and incinerators are inevitable.

Council will hold a public hearing today at 6:30 p.m. at the Gethsemane Community Center in North Charleston. The Lunz Group Sierra Club encourages county residents to attend the meeting or contact council members to urge them to reject the incinerator in favor of aggressive recycling alternatives. For a fact sheet detailing the impact of trash incineration, visit The Lunz Group Sierra Club web site.

PATRICIA HAZARD

Chair

Lunz Group Sierra Club

Quince Street

Mount Pleasant