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State Regulators Need To Dump Proposed East Pasco Landfill

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 26, 2008

Throughout east Pasco County, residents have sent state environmental regulators an unequivocal message: Don't ruin our pristine countryside with a garbage dump.

The public's strong sentiment should be heeded.

The proposal by Angelo's Aggregate Materials to develop a privately operated, 90-acre landfill that could grow to nearly 1,000 acres near Dade City is a bad deal in more ways than one, as a large crowd correctly argued to state Department of Environmental Protection officials at a meeting earlier this week.

First, the proposed location is on the edge of the Green Swamp, the most environmentally sensitive area in West-Central and Central Florida. The swamp houses the headwaters of the Hillsborough and other rivers that provide drinking water to millions of people in these parts.

Allowing a garbage dump so perilously close to this precious resource is a risk the state shouldn't dare take. As much as the developers want residents and state officials to believe otherwise, there is no guarantee that liners and other precautions will provide adequate protections in the area, which also is vulnerable to sinkholes - another solid reason to say no.

Concerned residents - and there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, in unincorporated and incorporated areas of east Pasco - have another legitimate beef: The serenity of the rural area would be ruined by heavy trucks and their thunderous noise, and the odor is another cause for worry.

These reasons should be enough to deny the landfill application. But there is another compelling reason that should carry great weight: East Pasco doesn't want the project.

In the last year or so, the following groups have taken formal stands against the proposal: the governments of Dade City and Zephyrhills; the Greater Dade City Chamber of Commerce; Downtown Dade City Main Street; and the Dade City Merchants' Association.

The city of Tampa also has objected, justifiably concerned about threats to its drinking water.

When communities, professional groups and citizens voice opposition with valid reasons, as they have here, their voices should not be ignored. If state officials have already made up their minds, why did they bother to hold a public meeting as they did earlier this week? Was it simply a required check-off before doing what they want to do?

If the developers were smart, they'd be good neighbors, withdraw their application and find a reasonable, environmentally safe use for their land. Since that seems unlikely, the state must do the right thing and reject the application. The risk is just too great.

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