Elmore County, Idaho, residents voted overwhelmingly
this past election to allow the continued shipment of out-of-state
nuclear wastes to a site 200 miles to the east of them. But they
are putting their foot down on a plan to place the state’s largest
landfill in their backyard.
The planning and
zoning commission decided to deny Idaho Waste System’s application
for a mile-square dump that could have handled 5,000 tons of trash
a day; the county’s three commissioners upheld the decision Nov.
20.
Opponents of the landfill in the largely
rangeland setting 30 miles east of Boise were able to collect over
3,000 signatures against the project. Anti-dump critics attacked
the plan for bringing in trash from around the Pacific Northwest.
Fred Shoemaker, attorney for Idaho Waste System, says an appeal
against the commissioner’s decision will probably be filed in
either state or federal court in the near future. “I wouldn’t try
to pretend that placing a solid waste facility in Elmore County has
met with popularity by the local residents,” Shoemaker
said.
* John Rosapepe
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline County trashes waste plan.
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