A fight is taking shape in Tennessee over who gets the final say on new landfills. Lawmakers indicate they may scale back a major form of local control, worrying residents who say rural towns already lack the resources to resist projects that bring additional pollution.
What happened?
According to the Tennessee Lookout, members of Tennessee’s Solid Waste Task Force are weighing possible revisions to the state’s “Jackson Law,” the nearly 40-year-old statute that gives local governments a say over whether landfill proposals can move ahead.
For business groups and landfill operators, the local review process poses too many obstacles to new landfill projects and expansions of existing ones.
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation solid waste permits manager Nickolaus Lytle said full landfill permits can take five to 10 years or more. The Tennessee Lookout reported that he added his office sees about eight landfill expansions a year requiring full permits…