Brewer Landfill Nearly Full; Officials Weigh Options

The city's landfill for construction and demolition debris on outer Elm Street will be full in a year or two, and officials are discussing possible solutions to the problem of where to put wood debris and other items once that happens.The 4-acre construction and demolition debris - or CDD - landfill was opened in 1992. The city is licensed to hold 100,000 cubic yards of specified debris at the site. The last volume estimate taken at the site totaled 90,000 cubic yards, which means, "We've only got 10,000 more cubic yards of space available," said Ken Locke, director of environmental services for Brewer.

He said the landfill site's nearly full status has prompted searches for other sites in Brewer. "We've been working on trying to relocate and license another location for two years," Locke said. Yet requirements issued by the Department of Environmental Protection are fairly strict on the issue. "We haven't been able to license another area," Locke said.

A likely site was found in back of the current landfill, but the groundwater came within three feet of the land surface and, according to the DEP, that disqualifies the area for a landfill.

Groundwater levels are taken in the spring with the use of an instrument inserted into the soil called a piezometer. The three-foot requirement, added to the fact that levels are read at a time of year when groundwater is high, virtually disqualifies most areas that have been considered for a landfill in the city.

A CDD landfill takes concrete, wood waste from construction projects and tear-down lumber from old sheds or old house sections.

It also takes insulation, plaster and sheetrock. There are piles for metal, plumbing fixtures and other items such as furniture.

Residents' weekly garbage put out curbside is collected and goes to the PERC plant in Orrington.

According to Locke, the landfill has a certain "footprint" that can be filled. Once that area is filled, "you don't go out, you go up," Locke said. The landfill "hill" is now 30-40 feet high.

"We've done side sloping and grown grass to prevent erosion. Most of the work we do is on top of the landfill," Locke said. The director said the last storage area, called a "life," was being filled now, "and then we'll be at 100,000 cubic feet."

A consultant recently completed a feasibility study and listed seven options to solve the city's CDD landfill woes. City officials are not ready to publicize those options, however.

"We have plenty of time to work through this," Locke said.

The CDD landfill is open to Brewer residents. Material also is taken from other communities including Eddington, Orrington, Holden, Dedham and Lucerne-in-Maine. Fees are charged at the gate.

An example of some fees charged are: $2 for a passenger-car tire; $5 for white goods including washing machines and refrigerators; $15 for white goods with Freon; $3 for a car filled with debris; $5 for a station wagon or passenger van's worth of debris; $15 for a pickup truck's worth of debris.

A copyright article from the Bangor Daily News by Nancy Garland, Of the NEWS Staff: Tuesday, August 19, 2003.