TOMPKINS COUNTY — Tompkins County lawmakers say it’s going to take time to figure out what to do with a coal ash landfill in the area.
The landfill has been a dumping site for waste from the Cayuga Power Plant in Lansing for decades. Recently, some in the community have questioned how secure the pollution in the landfill is, and groups including the Town of Ulysses have called for an outside study.
Legislator Carol Chock says it’s difficult to be sure how to move forward.
“We’ve heard presentations from both a private consultant, who had concerns about potential groundwater and other chemical runoff, and from representatives of the plant itself and their engineers,” she said. “What we heard were two very diametrically opposed views.”
Chock says if there’s a problem to fix, it could be costly, especially with the uncertain future of the plant.
“Compare that to what cleanups have cost from the gun shop, Emerson, and other places in our area,” she said. “It’s millions and millions of dollars. So our concern is if there should ever be potential liability, will you and I have to spend our tax dollars to clean up something that gets left behind?”
County lawmakers say they’ll be asking representatives from the state DEC to come and answer questions about the landfill and possible options.
