DUNMORE, Pa. — After a seven-year battle, the Keystone Sanitary Landfill got the go-ahead from state environmental officials to expand its dumpsites in Lackawanna County.
DEP says the expansion does not mean the company is taking on additional property.
The landfill will be dumping new waste into the valleys in between existing piles.
Christina Turnbull is raising two children in Dunmore, one of the two communities where the landfill is located.
“Disappointed, extremely disappointed. Disgusted, actually, disgusted,” said Turnbull.
The landfill first made the expansion request back in 2014, saying it was running out of space.
A landfill spokesperson says it will now be able to dispose of 94 million more tons of waste over four decades.
Michelle Dempsey is with Friends of Lackawanna, a group that opposed the expansion since its proposal.
“The DEP just basically waved the middle finger at the citizens of Northeast Pennsylvania,” said Dempsey. “Instead of giving us a bright future, they dumped our future.”
Dunmore Mayor Tim Burke agreed.
“DEP isn't worth even having a DEP because they don't do their job. It's very disappointing,” said Burke.
The mayor of Dunmore and Friends of Lackawanna plan to challenge the DEP's decision.
DEP spokesperson Colleen Connolly says the proposal was thoroughly vetted.
However, the approval comes with special conditions the landfill must stick to, based on the more than 1,500 public comments DEP received.
“They're going to do perimeter air monitoring, subsurface gas migration, odor patrols, put in a geosynthetic liner,” said Connolly.
Keystone's current permit will come up for review by DEP in 2025.
A copy of Keystone Landfill’s expansion approval, including the comment/response document, can be found on DEP’s Northeast Regional Office Community Information Page.