DEQ Approves Wall -- Hearing Set for March 28

by Susan Watkins

Despite pleas from neighbors and respected engineers, DEQ has decided to approve the 40-foot high wall Waste Managment wants to build on the Highway 18 side of the dump, without requiring the company to engineer the wall to withstand a magnitude 9.0 earthquake.

As those of you who have followed this story (see articles below) well know, the rest of the state of Oregon has agreed to start preparing for the enormous earthquake we know will hit our coast.  History teaches us that a subduction earthquake of magnitude 9.0 will strike off the Oregon coast sometime in the next 200 years.  This quake will be the US equivalent of the huge quake that devastated Japan two years ago.  Although the expected 60-foot-high tsunami will not inundate the Willamette Valley, the shaking along Highway 18 could last as long as 6 minutes.

The Stop the Dump Coalition has worked hard to convince DEQ to require Waste Management to engineer its proposed wall to the M9.0 standard, which will have an impact 15 times greater than an 8.5 quake.  We successfully persuaded the Environmental Quality Commission, which runs DEQ, to reach out to the state's earthquake experts, DOGAMI (Department of Geology and Minerals Industries), which is leading the effort to reinforce critical infrastructure to the 9.0 standard.

Despite this charge, DEQ asked DOGAMI only whether the 8.5 standard championed by Waste Management was sufficient under the law.  Unfortunately for the safety of landfill neighbors, Highway 18 travelers, and the South Yamhill River, DOGAMI agreed that 8.5 is the minimum standard the law allows.  Armed with this news, DEQ immediately approved the wall.

The approval is only tentative, however.  Before DEQ can finalize the permit, a hearing must be held and public comment considered.  DEQ recently withdrew a permit after a public hearing like the one planned for the wall, so it's important that people show up and testify.

The hearing will be held March 28 at 7:00 PM at the McMinnville Senior Center at 2250 NE McDaniel Lane.  The hearing will be preceded by an hour of Q&A with DEQ staff.  To learn more and to read DEQ's report, click here.