REGULATORY:
Let’s talk TRASH: Orchard Ridge Landfill Expansion
Tuesday, May 18 | 5:00 – 7:30 pm
Waste Management is proposing a significant expansion of the Orchard Ridge Eastern Landfill in Menomonee Falls, the largest solid waste landfill in Wisconsin. This would include a 76 acre horizontal expansion of the existing site and accept 750,000 tons of waste per year. This project requires filling several wetlands, and rerouting of a small creek that drains to the Menomonee River.
To facilitate this expansion, 58 acres of the existing Boundary Road Landfill Superfund Site
(the size of about 50 football fields) would be excavated. This landfill predated many of our environmental laws and waste regulations, but we know that it contains toxic compounds in an unlined landfill which are toxic to human health and the environment. It is likely some toxic contaminants are polluting the groundwater of the site, and several adjacent creeks that drain to the Menomonee River, and ultimately to Lake Michigan.
Waste Management plans to move the toxic waste to other adjacent landfill sites that are newer and in compliance with existing regulations, which could be positive, but, there is still tremendous concern over how this hazardous waste would be properly tested, managed, and disposed of to protect our waterways and our communities. We have asked for and continue to ask for a full Environmental Impact Statement on this project.
Share your input on this proposed project with the Wisconsin DNR at their public meeting on Tuesday, May 18th.
Send written comments to: David.Buser@wisconsin.gov by May 28, 2021.
INFORMATIONAL:
Learn about the Dredged Materials Management Facility
Tuesday, May 18 | 5:30 – 7:00 pm
Interested in the restoration of the Milwaukee Estuary? Join in for a virtual public information meeting about the proposed Dredged Materials Management Facility, a project getting underway as part of a major initiative to restore the health of our rivers and protect Lake Michigan.
The facility will provide safe containment for contaminated sediment that will be removed from the Milwaukee Estuary. This is a critical part of the work to achieve our clean water goals and another step towards achieving swimmable, fishable rivers.
For more information about the DMMF, visit the DMMF project webpage. To learn about the Milwaukee Estuary Area of Concern, follow this link
REGULATORY:
Share input on the permit for the Dredged Materials Management Facility
Thursday, May 20 | 1:00 – 3:00 pm
The dredged sediments from the work to restore Milwaukee’s Estuary Area of Concern must be dealt with in the safest possible manner to protect our Great Lake and waterways. This public meeting is part of the permitting process to construct the Dredged Materials Management Facility along the lakeshore.
While constructing this facility is important to future health of our rivers, it’s critical that the we proceed with caution, carefully considering how this facility will test, handle, and manage this hazardous waste in perpetuity. We must also ensure the final use of the site will be public in accordance with the Public Trust Doctrine.
Share input at the meeting on May 20th.