Town of Newburgh opposes Plattekill landfill

Posted 3/29/23

Plattekill residents who oppose plans for a landfill in their town have an ally south of the border.

The Newburgh Town Board by unanimous vote, approved a resolution on March 27 to oppose a …

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Town of Newburgh opposes Plattekill landfill

Posted

Plattekill residents who oppose plans for a landfill in their town have an ally south of the border.

The Newburgh Town Board by unanimous vote, approved a resolution on March 27 to oppose a proposed landfill by Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRRA). Councilman Paul Ruggiero was not present at the meeting for the vote.

According to previous reports, the UCRRA had commissioned a report by the company HydroQuest which identified two potential sites in Plattekill for the proposed landfill.

In the town resolution, it identified that one of the two sites, drains into and contains tributaries for the Quassaick Creek, the primary tributary for Chadwick Lake.

Chadwick Lake serves as the Town of Newburgh and Marlborough’s source of drinking water. Chadwick Lake also provides water to the Town of New Windsor on an emergency basis. The Chadwick Lake Reservoir also provides water to Stewart Airport, the Air National Guard Base, Leptondale Elementary School, East Coldenham School, Meadow Hill Magnet School, Fostertown Elementary School, Gardnertown Elementary School and Balmville Elementary School.

The reservoir also serves the Plattekill and Modena service areas of the New York State Thruway and the Roseton and Danskammer Plants. In accordance with state codes, rules and regulations and the Public Health Law, these regulations apply to the Chadwick Lake Reservoir and surrounding watersheds and tributaries. Also listed was that no refuse disposal area was to be within 250 feet of a watercourse.

UCRRA Executive Director Greg Ollivier made an appearance at the Plattekill Town Board meeting on March 15 and told the audience that no decision was made for the landfill site and a study had been conducted several years prior to his tenure.

The current study was still on the UCRRA website for public review.

On the UCRRA website, Ollivier noted in a letter that the current landfill in Seneca Falls, where waste from Ulster County is sent, was potentially closing in 2025 and the investigation into a new local landfill was required as part of a Solid Waste Management Plan. Other concerns about air pollution were also mentioned in the letter, and a local landfill would reduce those emissions.

For now, no new study has been conducted and no new site has been identified.

Currently, Ulster County is shipping its waste to a landfill 238 miles away at Seneca Falls.