Free Pink Martini Sing-a-Long!

by Thomas Lauderdale

3/29/2013 7:55:26 PM

Big Stop the Dump supporter Thomas Lauderdale writes:

On Saturday, March 30, at 3pm in Pioneer Courthouse Square in downtown Portland … Pink Martini (with China Forbes AND Storm Large) AND the von Trapps and members of the Oregon Symphony and the Pacific Youth Choir are leading the city’s first full-fledged community free sing-a-long. 

This is what I’ve always dreamed of doing with the band.  I can’t imagine anything more lovely, inclusive, festive, uplifting and wonderful than this.

Please come join us on Saturday afternoon in Pioneer Courthouse Square.    Click here for more info.

Just Say No

by Ilsa Perse

3/25/2013 3:16:28 PM

Hello Friends,

We need you now more than ever. 

WHY:  Just Say NO to a giant retaining wall to hold back another million tons of garbage
WHEN: THURSDAY March 28th -- 5:00 PM Rally -- 6:00 PM  DEQ Q&A and Hearing
WHERE: McMinnville Senior Center -- 2250 NE McDaniel Lane off 99W

Time to channel your inner Tom McCall. And if I may be so bold as to adapt one of his many memorable quotes:   
We don't have to say yes to every stinking dump that's offered. 

This Thursday night DEQ will listen to what the community has to say about permitting a 40-foot high wall along the Highway 18 side of the landfill to allow another MILLION tons of garbage to be dumped in Yamhill County.

Time to say NO, and Thursday night is the night to do it.

Q&A with DEQ  at 6:00 PM.  The formal hearing begins at 7:00 PM.
Sign-ups for testifying open at 5:30.

Join us at 5:00 PM on 99W and McDaniel Lane (with a sign if you care to make one) telling folks how you feel about a giant dump on the edge of town.

OR    Just come to the hearing!

Thursday * 5:00 PM rally at 99W and McDaniel Lane * 5:30 PM sign up to speak * 6:00 PM Q&A * 7:00 PM hearing begins

Or submit your comments online by April 5th.

Join us on Facebook at Stop Riverbend Landfill

1,000,000 Ton March!

by Susan Watkins

3/21/2013 1:05:30 AM

If you are willing to "wear" a garbage bag, you are invited to a pair of rallies Thursday, March 28, in McMinnville! 

The Stop the Dump Coalition and other landfill opponents are staging the Million Ton March garbage bag rallies to draw attention to the hearing DEQ is holding that night on the proposed construction of a 4-story-high berm at Riverbend Landfill.  DEQ has indicated its intent to issue a permit for the berm, which will allow the dump to remain open an additional two years and to take in another one million tons of waste.  The hearing is the public's opportunity to comment on DEQ's decision.

A noon rally designed to alert area residents to the hearing that evening is planned for the corner of Second and Adams in downtown Mac.  At 5:00 pm, just before the hearing, landfill opponents will gather at McDaniel Lane and Hwy 99W, then march the half block to the hearing at the Senior Center (2250 McDaniel Lane).  Sign-ups for the hearing open at 5:30, followed by a Q&A session with DEQ staff and the hearing itself at 7:00 pm.

A large crowd is expected.  When Yamhill County held similar hearings five years ago, more than 250 showed up to protest the expansion then proposed.  The County wasn't swayed by public opinion, but as recently as last month, DEQ withdrew a proposed permit in the face of broad community opposition.

In addition to testifying at the hearing, you can register your opposition to this expansion online or by fax (541-298-7330) or US mail: Bob Schwarz, Permit Engineer, Oregon DEQ, 400 E. Scenic Drive, Suite 307, The Dalles, OR 97058.  All comments must be received by DEQ no later than 5:00 pm Friday, April 5.

DEQ to Take Berm Comments at March 28 Hearing

by Susan Watkins

3/21/2013 12:18:19 AM

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) will take comments from the public regarding a proposed expansion of Riverbend Landfill at a hearing Thursday, March 28, in McMinnville.  The hearing will be held at the Senior Center, 2250 McDaniel Lane (near Hwy 99W).  Sign-ups to speak will begin at 5:30 pm.  A Q&A session with DEQ staff will take place from 6:00-7:00 pm with public comment to follow.

The expansion at issue involves construction of a 40-foot high "mechanically stabilized earthen" (MSE) berm that Waste Management, the landfill's Texas-based owner, wants to build on the Highway 18 side of the landfill.  Without expansion, the landfill will reach capacity in mid-2014.  The MSE berm will allow the landfill to accept an additional 1,000,000 tons of garbage and remain open an additional two years.

Waste Management's long-term plans include expanding onto an adjacent 60 acres of high-value farmland zoned EFU.  The two extra years of operation that the berm will provide will give Waste Management the time it needs to apply for the 30-year expansion it really wants.

A key issue with the proposed berm is its seismic stability.  Waste Management's engineers have designed the berm to withstand an 8.5 earthquake despite the widely-accepted expectation that a magnitude 9.0 quake will strike the region.  An 8.5 quake is bad enough, but an M9 event ismore than 5 times more powerful.

Moreover, local engineers have questioned the accuracy and sufficiency of data relied upon by Waste Management and DEQ.  Even at 8.5, they say, the berm as designed has a safety factor of only 1.0, which in engineering-speak means it will fail if even the tiniest calculation is too optimistic.

Adding a million more tons of solid waste to the 13,000,000 tons already in the landfill will only increase the pressure on the lower, river end of the dump.  That end is held in check by a much lower earthen berm whose stability has been questioned by experts familiar with the early days of Riverbend construction.  Segments of the lower berm have already failed at least once.

Allowing any expansion also means more trucks tearing up County roads, more stink on our main tourist roadway, and more air, water, noise, and light pollution.  Construction of the berm alone will result in 9,000 round trips for a truck & trailer hauling 20 cubic yards of MSE material -- 30 truck trips a day, 6 days a week, for a year!

In addition to testifying at the March 28 hearing, members of the public may also comment via email, fax, or US mail.  The comment period ends at 5:00 pm Friday, April 5.

Hearing Held on Unger's Bill

by Susan Watkins

3/20/2013 9:42:59 PM

On March 14 the Stop the Dump Coalition joined members of the Oregon Farm Bureau and land use watchdog Thousand Friends of Oregon to testify at the first legislative hearing for HB 3040, a bill sponsored by Ben Unger of Washington County that would prohibit landfills on EFU land (see related article below).

As presently worded, HB 3040 targets only landfills.  The bill summary reads:

Background:

One of Oregon’s most valuable assets is its farmland. Among the most fertile in the world and the source of a huge diversity of products, Oregon farms are an economic driver, a source of scenic beauty and pride, and an Oregon tradition. Over the past half century, thanks to foresighted land use measures such as SB 100, signed 40 years ago this May, Oregon has been a leader among states in protecting its farmland from sprawl, and uses incongruent with such fertile, pristine land.

The Problem:

The number of non-farm uses permitted on land zoned as “exclusive farm use” (EFU) has expanded substantially over the years. One of the more problematic permitted non-farm uses is landfills. Allowing landfills in farm zones not only destroys high value farmland indefinitely, but it lowers the value of adjacent land, creates conflict in farm zones, potentially leaks toxins into groundwater and aquifers, and harms the livelihood of nearby farmers.

To voice your support for this landmark legislation, contact Rep. Unger; be sure to reference the bill number (HB 3040) in your communication.  Email Benhere or call 503-986-1429.