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The Vermont Statutes Online
Title
10
:
Conservation and Development
Chapter
159
:
WASTE MANAGEMENT
Subchapter
001
:
GENERAL PROVISIONS
§
6605a. Review of existing landfills
(a) By July 1,
1990 the secretary of natural resources shall complete a review of each
landfill that is operating or certified as of July 1, 1987, to determine
whether it should be closed or continue to operate and whether remedial action
is necessary. The review shall assess:
(1) The impact
of the landfill on groundwater, surface water and air quality.
(2) The
operating history and compliance status of the landfill.
(3) The
potential of the landfill to affect the public health taking into account:
(A) the
proximity of drinking water supplies or buildings in regular use;
(B) the nature
and extent of actual or expected air and water contamination;
(C) the
ownership and use of surrounding land; and
(D) the size,
age, capacity and use of the landfill.
(b) Within 120
days after the review is completed, the secretary shall propose to certify the
landfill or to grant an interim certification pursuant to section 6605b of this
title to close or upgrade the landfill. A landfill shall be closed or remedial
action shall be required if the secretary finds that it has caused or is likely
to cause a significant risk to public health or the environment.
(c) No later
than July 1, 1991 the operating portion of each landfill shall be lined, if
required under the provisions of subsection 6605(d) of this title, except that
those in operation as of July 1, 1987 that are certified to receive or actually
receive less than 1,000 tons of municipal waste per year may be exempted from
this requirement according to the provisions of subsection (d) of this section,
or if, considering the factors established in subdivision (a)(3) of this
section, the secretary finds that they will not create a significant risk to
public health and that they will not cause irreparable harm to the environment.
Violations of secondary safe drinking water standards, standing alone, will not
be construed under this subsection or under subsection 6605(b) of this title to
constitute significant risks to public health or to cause irreparable harm to
the environment. Where the secretary has determined, by clear and convincing
evidence, that the operation of a solid waste landfill, or the existence of a
solid waste landfill closed after July 1, 1987, has increased the level of any
secondary drinking water quality contaminant, in the downgradient groundwater,
so that the resulting water quality exceeds the secondary drinking water
standards, the secretary shall require the operator of the landfill facility to
institute remedial activities. These remedial activities may include the
installation of water treatment systems to remove secondary contaminants from
the affected drinking water supplies, or the replacement of the contaminated
drinking water source or sources.
(d) The secretary
may authorize continued operation of a municipally owned unlined landfill which
is in operation on July 1, 1992 and which will receive less than 1,000 tons per
year of waste for disposal, if the legislative body of the municipality has
voted to continue to operate the landfill and if the secretary has approved a
plan submitted by the municipality which shall be implemented by October 1,
1992, which demonstrates how approximately 90 percent of yard waste and
hazardous waste from households and small quantity generators, along with a
substantial portion of marketable recyclables, will be removed from the waste
stream before disposal. Approval under this section shall exempt the landfill
from compliance with those provisions of the solid waste rules that require a
minimum vertical separation to bedrock of ten feet, that require a minimum of
six feet vertical separation from the high seasonal water table, and that
require a minimum distance of 300 feet to the waters of the state. Violations
of secondary safe drinking water standards, standing alone, will not be
construed under this subsection or under subsection 6605(b) of this title to
allow or require the secretary to deny approval of landfills regulated under
this subsection. Where the secretary has determined, by clear and convincing
evidence, that the operation of a solid waste landfill, or the existence of a
solid waste landfill closed after July 1, 1987, has increased the level of any
secondary drinking water quality contaminant, in the downgradient groundwater,
so that the resulting water quality exceeds the secondary drinking water
standards, the secretary shall require the operator of the landfill facility to
institute remedial activities. These remedial activities may include the
installation of water treatment systems to remove secondary contaminants from
the affected drinking water supplies, or the replacement of the contaminated
drinking water source or sources. (Added 1987, No. 78, § 9; amended 1991, No.
202 (Adj. Sess.), § 11, eff. May 27, 1992; 1993, No. 232 (Adj. Sess.), § 43,
eff. March 15, 1995.)
