Changes to waste disposal in the Duluth area – WDIO.com

 

Regional Waste Management Strategy and Sustainable Development Impact Analysis

Executive Summary

A new ten-year agreement between Resource Renew and St. Louis County marks a significant shift in regional waste management. The impending closure of the Moccasin Mike landfill in Superior necessitates redirecting waste from a service area of 150,000 people to the St. Louis County Landfill in Virginia. This report details the transition, focusing on the economic impacts and the significant advancements toward achieving key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in water sanitation, sustainable infrastructure, and responsible consumption.

Current Waste Management and Sustainability Challenges

Resource Renew, formerly the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District, manages solid waste for communities including Duluth, Hermantown, and Cloquet. Current operations face imminent changes due to landfill capacity limits.

Waste Reduction Efforts (SDG 12)

In alignment with SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, Resource Renew actively works to minimize landfill waste through several programs:

• A regional household hazardous waste facility for paints, cleaners, and other chemicals.
• A reuse center providing free, salvaged products like paint and stains to the public, preventing unnecessary disposal.
• Public education initiatives aimed at promoting reduction and reuse.

Moccasin Mike Landfill Closure

The Moccasin Mike landfill, which has served the region for 20 years, is nearing capacity and is scheduled to close. Key factors driving the closure include:

• The facility is projected to be full within one year.
• Its proximity to Lake Superior is now considered an environmental risk, making its closure a critical step toward protecting vital freshwater resources, in line with SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation and SDG 14: Life Below Water.

The St. Louis County Partnership: A New Framework for Sustainability

Resource Renew has entered a ten-year agreement with St. Louis County following a selection process that prioritized environmental and economic benefits. This partnership is a key example of SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.

Agreement Details

1. Waste from Resource Renew’s service area will be transported approximately 60 miles to the St. Louis County Landfill in Virginia.
2. The increased transportation distance is expected to raise annual household garbage bills by an estimated $10-$20.
3. The partnership establishes a long-term, regional solution for waste management.

Advancing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Through Innovation

The transition to the St. Louis County facility represents a significant environmental improvement, leveraging modern technology to address complex contamination issues.

SDG 6 & SDG 3: Clean Water and Well-being

The St. Louis County landfill features an advanced wastewater (leachate) treatment system that directly supports public and environmental health.

• The system is engineered to remove PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) from the water.
• It utilizes a “closed-loop” containment process where captured PFAS on membranes and activated carbon are returned to the lined landfill, preventing their release into groundwater.
• This innovative approach ensures that water discharged from the facility is exceptionally clean, directly contributing to SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation and SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being.

SDG 9 & SDG 11: Sustainable Infrastructure and Communities

The agreement facilitates investment in modern, resilient infrastructure and the remediation of past environmental issues.

• The St. Louis County facility is described as an “advanced environmental campus,” representing an investment in sustainable infrastructure as outlined in SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.
• There is a commitment to cleaning up historical, unlined dumps to mitigate legacy contamination, creating safer environments and contributing to SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities.

Future Outlook and Long-Term Planning

Landfill Capacity and Remediation (SDG 15)

The partnership includes a forward-looking strategy for both new capacity and the closure of old sites.

1. The influx of waste will reduce the Virginia landfill’s lifespan from 20 years to approximately 8 years, prompting proactive plans for expansion and the construction of a new landfill in Canyon to ensure 100-year operational capacity.
2. The Moccasin Mike landfill will be capped with multiple layers of material and topsoil, allowing for revegetation. The site will be monitored for at least 40 years to ensure environmental safety, a process that supports SDG 15: Life on Land.

Transition for the City of Superior

The City of Superior will also transition from operating a landfill to transporting its waste elsewhere. While this shifts the city from earning revenue to incurring disposal costs, the financial impact is expected to be minimal due to the corresponding savings from ceasing landfill maintenance and operations.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation: The article emphasizes protecting water resources from contamination. It details plans for an advanced wastewater treatment system at the new landfill to remove PFAS and prevent them from entering groundwater, directly addressing water quality.
• SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities: The core of the article is about municipal solid waste management for a service area of 150,000 people in several cities and townships. It discusses the challenges of landfill capacity and the infrastructure needed to manage urban waste sustainably.
• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production: The article discusses the entire lifecycle of waste, from efforts to “reduce, reuse, and recycle” through public education and reuse centers, to the final, environmentally sound disposal of waste in modern, engineered landfills.
• SDG 14: Life Below Water: A key reason for closing the Moccasin Mike landfill is its proximity to Lake Superior. The article explicitly states, “It’s just not a good idea to have trash right next to Lake Superior,” linking the action to the protection of a major aquatic ecosystem from land-based pollution.
• SDG 15: Life on Land: The article addresses the impact of landfills on terrestrial ecosystems. It describes the process of restoring the closed landfill site by capping it and covering it with topsoil to grow grass. It also mentions plans to clean up old, unlined dumps that have contaminated the land.
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals: The article is centered on the “ten-year agreement” between St. Louis County and Resource Renew. This is a clear example of a public-public partnership formed to address a regional environmental and logistical challenge.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 6.3: By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials. This is addressed by the new landfill’s advanced wastewater treatment system designed to “take PFAS out of the wastewater” and the intention to “clean up the contamination of the old dumps.”
2. Target 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management. The entire article focuses on improving municipal waste management for a large service area to reduce its environmental impact, particularly the negative effects of the landfill located next to Lake Superior.
3. Target 12.4: By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle… and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil. This is demonstrated by the management of a “household hazardous waste facility” and the new landfill’s “closed loop” system to contain PFAS, preventing their release into the environment.
4. Target 12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse. This is connected to Resource Renew’s efforts to “reduce the amount of waste that ends up in a landfill” through public education and services like the “reuse center where people can come and get free paint, cleaning products, stains.”
5. Target 14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities. The decision to close the Moccasin Mike landfill is a direct action to prevent potential pollution of Lake Superior from a land-based source.
6. Target 15.3: By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil… and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world. This is relevant to the plan for the Moccasin Mike landfill after closure, where it will be capped and covered with “organic topsoil that will allow grass to grow,” effectively restoring a degraded site.
7. Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships. The “ten-year agreement between St. Louis County and Resource Renew” is a direct example of a public-public partnership to achieve sustainable development objectives.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. For Target 6.3: An implied indicator is the quality of the effluent water from the new treatment facility. The article claims, “The water coming out of that facility will be cleaner than the rainwater,” suggesting that the concentration of contaminants like PFAS in the discharged water can be measured. Another indicator is the number of old, contaminated dumps that are cleaned up.
2. For Target 11.6: A mentioned indicator is the volume of waste transported daily (“Around 16 large trucks a day”). While not a per capita figure, it measures the scale of municipal waste being managed. The “10-$20 increase per year in your garbage bill” is an economic indicator related to the cost of sustainable waste management.
3. For Target 12.4: An implied indicator is the amount of hazardous waste collected and diverted from the general waste stream through the “regional household hazardous waste facility.” The integrity and effectiveness of the “closed loop” system for PFAS containment is another key performance indicator.
4. For Target 12.5: An implied indicator is the volume of materials (paint, cleaners, stains) distributed through the reuse center, which quantifies waste reduction through reuse.
5. For Target 14.1: A mentioned indicator is the long-term monitoring of the closed landfill. The article states, “we have to monitor it for at least 40 years to make sure that it’s safe,” implying that data from this monitoring (e.g., water quality tests) will measure the success of preventing pollution into Lake Superior.
6. For Target 15.3: An implied indicator is the area of land restored. The article refers to closing and capping the “final cell” of the landfill, which represents a specific area of land being rehabilitated.
7. For Target 17.17: The primary indicator is the existence and execution of the formal “ten-year agreement” between the two public entities, which serves as concrete evidence of the partnership.

4. Create a table with three columns titled ‘SDGs, Targets and Indicators” to present the findings from analyzing the article. In this table, list the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), their corresponding targets, and the specific indicators identified in the article.

SDGs	Targets	Indicators
SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation	6.3: Improve water quality by reducing pollution and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals.	– Quality of treated wastewater from the new facility (e.g., measured PFAS concentration). – Number of old, contaminated dump sites remediated.
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities	11.6: Reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, focusing on municipal waste management.	– Volume of municipal waste managed (e.g., “16 large trucks a day”). – Annual cost increase per household for waste services (“$10-$20 increase per year”).
SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production	12.4: Achieve environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes. 12.5: Substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse.	– Volume of hazardous materials managed through the hazardous waste facility. – Effectiveness of the “closed loop” PFAS containment system. – Volume of materials (paint, cleaners) diverted from landfill via the reuse center.
SDG 14: Life Below Water	14.1: Prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution from land-based activities.	– Results from the 40-year monitoring program of the closed landfill to ensure no leakage into Lake Superior.
SDG 15: Life on Land	15.3: Restore degraded land and soil.	– Area of landfill (“final cell”) that is capped, covered with topsoil, and restored.
SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals	17.17: Encourage and promote effective public-public partnerships.	– The existence and implementation of the formal “ten-year agreement” between St. Louis County and Resource Renew.

Source: wdio.com