Dive Brief:

• Waste Management has stopped its appeal of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) approval of the revised Clearfield County solid waste management plan. A trial set for Sept. 29 was canceled.
• Waste Management had alleged the county commissioners' request for innovative proposals to support and sustain the county's waste programs was an illegal solicitation of fees. The company also questioned the process the county used for scoring the eight proposals and selecting flow-control facilities. 
• The commissioners had approved that all county waste be taken to either Veolia Greentree landfill in Elk County, now owned by Advanced Waste Disposal, or the Wayne Township landfill in Clinton County. For its "innovative approach," Advanced proposed a reduced fee charged to the county to pick up recyclables at its drop-off locations. The new fee offered a savings of $34,000, as well as an annual voluntary contribution of $27,500 to support the county’s programs. The Wayne Township landfill also offered to pay the county $2 for every ton of Clearfield County waste disposed of there for an annual support of approximately $7,500. 

Dive Insight:

Waste Management's withdrawal ends two years of litigation.

Solicitor Kim Kesner told Gant Daily that the county's victory wasn’t "some minor thing." He explained that Act 101, enacted in 1988, required counties to formulate solid waste disposal plans for the first time and to pursue recycling and waste reduction programs. These plans were to be submitted to the DEP for approval and revised every 10 years. 

However, Clearfield County's recycling programs have faced a deficit over the last 10 years. "That’s been the problem statewide," said Kesner.

Also, Kesner said the state has excess landfill capacity, making it even harder on recycling programs, as it’s cheaper to put garbage in a landfill. He called attention to the fact that Pennsylvania has seen an influx in out-of-state waste.