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USDA Seeks Comment on Transport of Garbage from Hawaii

  • Jan 20, 2010

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has prepared an environmental assessment on a request to allow the interstate movement of garbage from Hawaii to a landfill in Washington, according to a Jan. 19 Federal Register notice.

The environmental assessment documents the review and analysis of the environmental impacts associated with, and alternatives to, the movement of palletized or containerized baled municipal solid waste to three existing ports on the Columbia River via barge and the transfer and transportation of the waste via truck or rail to the landfill.

The importation and interstate movement of garbage is regulated by APHIS to protect against the introduction into and dissemination within the United States of plant and animal pests and diseases.

In June 2008, APHIS found no significant impact on the petition from Hawaiian Waste Systems LLC. But in November 2009, the service received a revised petition from the company to transport 150,000 tons of municipal solid waste annually in plastic airtight bales that are either palletized or containerized in 20- and 40-foot shipping containers from Hawaii to Roosevelt Regional Landfill in Washington by any of three methods:

  • barge to Teevin Brother Terminal in Rainier, Wash., followed by truck or rail transportation;
  • barge to the Port of Longview, Wash., followed by truck or rail transportation; or
  • barge to the Port of Portland, Ore., followed by truck or rail transportation.

Comments on the assessment must be made before Feb. 18. To view materials and submit comments electronically, go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal here

Comments

Fri, Jan 22, 2010 Byron

Transporting waste across the ocean to the continental US introduces an unnecessary risk of spillage and contamination to water and land. Hawaii does have other alternatives to manage its waste that would create new jobs and save money in waste transportation and disposal. An aggressive mandatory recycling program in Hawaii (residential and commercial) would significantly reduce the volume of municiple solid waste. Incentives to recycle and penalties for failure to recycle would ensure success of the program. A mass burn facility on a remote area of the Hawaiin Islands would not only reduce the transportation costs for waste disposal but would also generate electricity to add to the power grid. The mandatory recycling and mass burn facility, if adopted together, would create new jobs, dramatically reduce waste, reduce the need for additional landfill space and generate income. In summary, Hawaii can turn this environmental issue into an opportunity and set the model for all other large US cities to aspire.

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