Latest news with #DepartmentofEnvironmentalServices
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Honolulu city council looks to use hotel tax to help lower projected sewer fee increase
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Sewer fees on Oahu are set to rise starting July 1, and while the Honolulu City Council is seeking ways to lessen the financial impact on residents, not everyone agrees on the best approach. COVID on the Climb: Health Officials Urge Caution, Not Panic 'We now have the second-highest rent in the country. Food is expensive. Electricity is expensive,' said Council Chair Tommy Waters. 'Now our sewer bill is going to go up by 115%? We've got to do something.' The original rate structure proposed a 50-50 split between fixed charges and charges based on water usage, with a 9% annual increase over the first six years, followed by decreases to 8%, 7%, 6%, and 5% in the remaining years. A revised proposal introduces a more gradual rate hike, beginning at 6% and peaking at 9% before tapering down to 7% by year 10. It would also shift the cost structure to 40% fixed and 60% variable, aiming to better align sewer charges with actual household water use and promote conservation. 'We need it because there's a lot of projects we have to do,' said Roger Babcock, director of the city's Department of Environmental Services. 'We have billions of dollars of sewer infrastructure — pipes, manholes, pump stations, and nine wastewater treatment plants.'To help offset the fee increases, the City Council is advancing Bill 43, which proposes diverting revenue from Oʻahu's transient accommodations tax — a hotel tax — from the general fund to a sewer fund. Supporters say the move could reduce the burden on residents. However, Babcock raised concerns about the plan, noting that hotels already charge guests a sewer fee and that shifting tax revenue could hurt the city's bond rating, which affects its ability to borrow for infrastructure projects. 'If you start moving money around from one source to another that wasn't part of the financial plan, bond ratings could be degraded,' Babcock said. Waters compared the idea to using a credit card to pay for necessities. 'Pay it up front in cash and save the money we're paying on interest payments,' he said. Bill 43 passed its first reading Tuesday but must still go through committee and pass two more full council votes before becoming law. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news 'No matter which bill ultimately ends up passing, we want to reduce the financial impact on our families while protecting the city's bond rating,' said Council Vice Chair Matt Weyer. 'And ensure we provide that core service — every time you flush or shower, that water has to go somewhere.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Citing unspecified issues, panel stalls bipartisan trash juice bill
A photo taken by the Department of Environmental Services during a June 4 site visit shows the Bethlehem landfill. (Screenshot from DES report) Legislation spurred by failures to properly manage 'trash juice' at several of the state's landfills hangs in uncertainty after a Senate committee vote last week. The state already requires landfill applicants to create plans for managing leachate, the liquid pollution created when precipitation mixes with waste. House Bill 566, which is backed by bipartisan sponsors and moved easily through the House, would require more details from new landfills and those seeking to expand about the treatment of that liquid pollution and transportation for facilities that treat it off site. But the legislation hit a hurdle April 29 in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, where members voted, 3-2, to recommend the bill be rereferred to committee, leaving its fate for the session unclear. Backers of the bill expressed surprise at the vote — and wished that concerns about it had been aired more publicly. They pointed to leachate management issues around the state, including some in April around the time the bill was first heard in the Senate. Before the vote, Sen. Howard Pearl, a Loudon Republican, said he was 'just not quite convinced yet that this is right.' He said he wanted 'the opportunity just to look at this and see if we can resolve' what he saw as issues in the bill 'before we moved it forward.' He did not specify what those issues were. 'I'm not necessarily opposed to the concept of it,' Pearl said. 'Just the workability of it — I've had some conversations since our hearing that seem to be very problematic, and I would not want to put something in place that … was going to create problems, unintended consequences.' Pearl did not respond to a request for comment from the Bulletin asking who those conversations were with and what parts of the bill he found problematic. Rep. Nicholas Germana, the Keene Democrat leading the bill, said he had gone to 'great lengths to reach out to the industry and to (the Department of Environmental Services) to make sure that this was workable.' 'It was surprising,' Germana said of the vote, 'and I wish there was more of an opportunity to try to address those concerns, but it's hard to address them when they're not raised in a public setting.' Germana said he hopes he can clear up concerns with senators on the committee to 'see if there's any chance that we might be able to change the outcome in the Senate.' If not, 'this fall, when they take up retained bills again, hopefully there's an opportunity for a discussion about … what the issues are.' Sen. David Watters, a Dover Democrat, said before the vote that besides a technical change Germana had planned to suggest, 'I'm not clear … what the issues are.' 'This is one where we know … there's been spills, there's been problems, there's been overflows,' Watters said. 'And so while I think it's always good to keep working on things, I think at this point I'd like to vote against rerefer, because I think it might be possible for us to get a bill done.' The other Democrat on the committee, Sen. Cindy Rosenwald of Nashua, joined him in opposing the motion. She said leachate management problems seemed to be getting worse because of 'more intense rainfall.' Adam Finkel, a Dalton resident and former federal regulator who has advocated in the Legislature for more protective landfill standards, said he's starting to see 'that fewer and fewer opponents of legislation, at least in the environmental area, are bothering to come to hearings and give their opinions on the record, because they don't have to.' 'It's a win-win for them,' he said, 'if they can not have to make their arguments in public, where they're weak and can be refuted, and they get to make them in private, in a setting where they're more important than anything the public says.' Harmful chemicals from trash seep into leachate, meaning its mismanagement can pose serious environmental and public health risks. This risk was brought into the spotlight by the recent management problems, including hundreds of leachate-related violations at Casella Waste Systems' landfill in the northern town of Bethlehem. (The company is now locked in a legal battle with the state over its bid to build another landfill in the nearby town of Dalton.) Germana said 'the day after I introduced that bill to the Senate, they had a problem at Bethlehem' with leachate. In April, Casella was doing maintenance on its leachate collection system at the Bethlehem landfill, said Jeff Weld, the company's vice president of communications. Michael Wimsatt, DES' waste management division director, said the department had been notified of this maintenance, which was likely to increase the level of leachate on the liner, since the pump could not be operated during the process. On the morning of April 23, operators at Casella's Bethlehem landfill noticed a leachate pump in one of the pump stations was not working, according to a memo from DES waste management specialist Austin Mills. Weld said the company 'immediately investigated and began monitoring the (affected) pump house and manually pumping, pending repair the following day.' The morning of April 24, an electrician made repairs, 'restoring normal operation to the pumping system by 10:30AM,' per the memo. A company official, Lindsey Menard, told Mills that the transducer level 'read 100+ inches when the operation was restored,' according to the memo. At the time of the phone call with the department that afternoon, Menard said the level was at 14 inches. Leachate levels are not supposed to exceed 12 inches on the liner of a landfill. But Wimsatt said the 100-plus-inch reading on the transducer wasn't equivalent to the level of leachate on the liner. If the transducer reading was accurate, the amount on the liner was probably '3 feet less than the 100 inches,' he said. The department was still reviewing the incident, and it was not yet clear what the highest leachate level on the liner had been, he said. In the department memo, Mills said he reminded the Casella representative that the state 'requires the permittee to notify the department as soon as practicable and that we were over 24 hours since they were first aware of an issue.' Menard said 'she would remind the operations staff' at the landfill, the memo said. There had also been exceedances days before this incident, resulting in leachate levels reaching just over 63 inches and 46 inches on the liner system in two pump stations, according to an incident report. Weld said the exceedances were 'reported in a timely fashion verbally and in writing,' and said pumps had to be shut off while cleaning was being done. HB 566 would not affect the Bethlehem landfill, but its handling of leachate has been cited frequently as proponents of the bill have made their case for it. Asked for the company's stance on the bill, Weld said there was already 'significant oversight' for leachate management in the state, and that the 'ability to predict the future of leachate technology, availability of disposal sites, transportation options, etc. at the time of permit application for the lifespan of a landfill is not realistic.' The bill would put the existing requirement for leachate management plans into statute, in addition to setting more detailed standards. It would include language that requires DES, before issuing a permit, to make a positive determination that the permit application includes a detailed leachate management plan. The state currently requires landfills to: have at least two locations for leachate disposal; estimate how much leachate they will generate; and describe how leachate will be handled at the landfill before being shipped somewhere else for disposal, according to DES. They must also have procedures in place to bring down leachate levels to a foot or lower within a week of a 100-year storm event. Regulations also include details about on-site leachate management systems. Eliot Wessler, a Whitefield resident involved in solid waste advocacy, said this bill does 'a lot more, in my opinion, than what's in the existing DES rules.' 'It makes very, very clear that a solid waste permit applicant has to provide detailed information about their leachate plans,' Wessler said in an interview, 'and not only in the short run, but in the long run, including what happens, you know, at the point of closure and even in the post-closure period.' He had been surprised by the vote, he said, telling senators in testimony before the bill hearing that he 'fully expected' them to recommend it for passage. 'How can you be opposed to trying to require … new landfills and expansions of landfills to be more concerned about how they manage leachate,' Wessler said, 'and to give DES more opportunities to correct any problems with their leachate management plan before the permits are issued?'
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
SC Senate confirms governor's pick to lead environmental agency
Myra Reece was confirmed Wednesday, April 30, 2025, as the director of the state's environmental agency. (Provided by the S.C. Governor's Office) COLUMBIA — The state Senate confirmed the governor's choice for the first director of the state's newly formed environmental agency Wednesday. Myra Reece has been interim director of the 1,000-employee Department of Environmental Services since its formation last year, when legislators split the department overseeing public health and environmental regulations into two. With the Senate's vote of 29-9 to confirm her, she will take over leadership of the agency permanently. All 'no' votes came from Republicans. 'There is no one more qualified or better positioned to continue leading the Department of Environmental Services forward and into the future than Myra Reece,' Gov. Henry McMaster said in a statement. Reece's confirmation faced pushback from some legislators over what Sen. Wes Climer described as a 'relatively dim view of private property rights.' Climer, R-Rock Hill, repeated criticisms leveled against her by activist Rom Reddy, who has opposed Reece's nomination since the environmental agency fined him for a seawall he built on his oceanfront property on the Isle of Palms. SC governor taps interim director to lead environmental agency While other senators praised Reece during her confirmation hearings for helping constituents solve problems that had otherwise hit a wall, Climer said the need for legislators to get involved at all showed problems in the department. 'Those are evidences of a breakdown of the execution of the agency,' Climer said. 'That is evidence of failure in a lot of cases.' Reece previously spent nine years as director of environmental affairs for the combined Department of Health and Environmental Control. Before that, she was chief of the department's air quality bureau and a regional office division director. Her annual salary is $179,925. 'As a born and raised South Carolinian, I couldn't be prouder to assume this critical public service position that helps safeguard our irreplaceable natural environment while supporting our state's unprecedented economic growth,' Reece said in a statement Thursday. Reece fared much better than her counterpart in the newly formed Department of Public Health. A separate panel of senators declined to advance the nomination of Dr. Edward Simmer, who led DHEC for three years, primarily over concerns about the agency's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Beach property owner urges Senate to block director of agency that fined him $289,000
An Isle of Palms property owner who was fined $289,000 over construction of a seawall on the beach is fighting plans to make the acting director of the agency that penalized him the department's permanent chief. But Rom Reddy says his recommendation that the Senate not confirm Myra Reece as director of the Department of Environmental Services is on behalf of property owners who can't afford to defend themselves against heavy-handed state enforcement efforts. Reddy, a wealthy owner of small newspapers, said he has the resources to challenge the Department of Environmental Services in court. 'The nomination of Myra Reece, a 30-year career bureaucrat, is a disgrace in a red state,'' Reddy said in a text to The State newspaper. 'I have personally experienced the police powers she and her agency have used. By the grace of God, I can afford to stand up to their bullying. They prey on the 80 percent of small businesses and citizens who cannot afford to stand up to their police powers.'' Reddy, who has started a political action committee, has run afoul of coastal regulators over construction of a seawall along the beach at the Isle of Palms. He now is involved in a legal fight with Reece's agency over the $289,000 fine last year. He disputes the state's position that the seawall was built illegally. State law restricts seawall construction because they can worsen beach erosion. Reddy said South Carolina needs fresh leadership in its environmental protection department. He maintains that people's rights often have been infringed upon by overzealous government agencies. Reece declined comment Friday. An enthusiastic supporter of Republican President Donald Trump, Reddy put $2.5 million into the political action committee and has launched a web site that supports a state version of Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, which is making deep cuts in the federal workforce and regulations. Last fall, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster chose Reece to be the permanent director at the environmental services department, saying 'no one is more qualified or better positioned to lead this agency.'' He said her professionalism and commitment had earned his respect and the respect of others. Reece, 66, is a North Augusta resident widely known in state government for her easygoing manner, her understanding of politics and her knowledge of environmental rules. She has a reputation as a consensus builder and is now steering efforts to come up with a comprehensive state water plan. Some of those who know her say she is not heavy-handed with enforcement. Senators, who must confirm McMaster's appointment, have not met yet to discuss Reece, although they have confirmed some of McMaster's other picks, including Department of Natural Resources Director Tom Mullikin. A hearing on Reece would likely need to be held this month because the Legislative session ends in May. One McMaster choice not confirmed by the Senate is Edward Simmer, who worked with Reece at the state Department of Health and Environmental Control before it was dissolved last July as part of government restructuring. A Senate committee this week did not deem Simmer qualified to be named permanent director of the new state Department of Public Health after an outcry from COVID vaccine opponents. The Medical Affairs committee voted 12-5 against Simmer. York County Republican Wes Climer, who chairs the Senate agriculture committee that would vet Reece, declined to share any concerns committee members might have about Reece. Among those on the committee is Sen. Stephen Goldinch, a Georgetown County lawmaker who has been highly critical of state coastal enforcement efforts. Goldfinch, a Republican from Murrells Inlet, has introduced legislation that would call for examination of whether certain state regulations are necessary. He was not available for comment Friday. He has led efforts to change development rules to help seaside property owners. A key question is how far back state jurisdiction extends from the ocean. Many interest groups familiar with Reece's work at DHEC are backing her to become permanent director of the new environmental services department. Environmental organizations, including Audubon SC, the S.C. Wildlife Federation, Upstate Forever and the Congaree Riverkeeper, as well as business associations, such as the Home Builders Association of South Carolina, have written letters of support for Reece becoming director at the environmental services agency. The Palmetto Agribusiness Council and the state Forestry Association, two major agricultural organizations, also have written letters of support, as has state Agriculture Commissioner Hugh Weathers. 'She enforces our state's environmental laws, protecting our state's natural resources and our economy, while maintaining a level of respect for farming and the people who make up the industry,'' Weathers wrote. One coastal association, S.C. Beach Advocates, backs her, as well. The beach group's members include city officials who deal with oceanfront development issues. 'Her leadership style, which emphasizes balanced problem-solving, has garnered respect from a diverse array of stakeholders,'' wrote Isle of Palms Mayor Phillip Pounds, who chairs the beach advocates group. Former DHEC employee Rebecca Haynes, who now heads Audubon SC, and one-time agency board member Rick Lee said they never found Reece to be overzealous in directing enforcement. Both said she is easy to work with and reasonable. Haynes and Lee said Reece has backed up staff members who were trying to uphold state environmental rules. 'She needs to be confirmed,'' Lee said. Still, Reddy said South Carolina needs a new way of thinking about environmental issues, akin to that of Lee Zeldin, Trump's U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator. Zeldin has led efforts to rollback a plethora of regulations businesses say are burdensome and he has cut funding for an array of environmental programs. Reddy called McMaster's choice of Reece to run the Department of Environmental Services a 'lazy'' one. He said Reece kowtows to environmental organizations who pressure the agency with lawsuits. 'You need a strong person who stands up for the citizens,'' Reddy said.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Casella solid waste application for Dalton landfill denied; DES cites ‘dormancy'
For years, local residents have rallied against the project, citing its proximity to a pristine lake and forest, and related fears about how the landfill would impact the environment and public health. (File photo by Amanda Gokee/New Hampshire Bulletin) This story was updated on April 3 at 6:10 p.m. to add a comment from Casella. A Vermont-based company's proposal to build a landfill in a tiny, northern New Hampshire town took a major blow this week. The Department of Environmental Services issued a 'denial by dormancy' Thursday to Casella Waste System's solid waste permit application for its proposed landfill in Dalton. This permit is one of several sought by the company for the project, and without it, the project cannot go forward. The company has 30 days to file an appeal with the state's Waste Management Council. Jeff Weld, Casella's vice president of communications, said the company had received the letter and was considering its options. For years, local residents have rallied against the project, citing its proximity to a pristine lake and forest, and related fears about how the landfill would impact the environment and public health. Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte joined them in their efforts, vowing in her inaugural address in January that the landfill would not be built. At the same time, solid waste management across the state has come under greater legislative scrutiny, especially after the state approved hotly contested updates to its landfill regulations in December. A permit application becomes dormant when the applicant fails to submit required information requested by the department within a year of first being notified that the application is incomplete. For Casella, that one-year mark came on Feb. 28, according to a letter sent to the company Thursday by Mike Wimsatt, the agency's solid waste management division director. A dormant, incomplete application 'shall be deemed denied without further action by the department,' per the letter. Wimsatt said the application remained incomplete for a number of reasons. For one, it lacked a 'site report that demonstrates that the location of the proposed facility complies with all applicable siting requirements and that the site is a suitable location for the proposed facility …,' according to the letter. Additionally, 'the maps, figures, and hydrogeological report' submitted by the applicant in 2023 had not been updated to show compliance with the state's regulations that were updated in December, Wimsatt said. Legal agreements submitted by the company 'failed to fulfill application requirements because they were heavily redacted and referenced other legal agreements, which were not provided,' Wimsatt said. The company also had not submitted 'copies of the documents that demonstrate that the applicant and their successors and assigns will have a legal right for the use of the properties as proposed in the application,' which the state requires, according to the letter. For those who have invested years in fighting the landfill, it was a moment of optimism. But for many, the work doesn't end in Dalton. Adam Finkel, a former federal regulator and Dalton resident who has advocated for solid waste reform in the state, pointed to pending legislation to bolster the state's landfill siting requirements and other aspects of the recently updated regulations that raised deep concerns last year. 'Very happy that DES has done the right thing, but it doesn't in any way, large or small, deter me from the larger goal,' Finkel said, 'which is making sure that no community in New Hampshire ever has to deal with this kind of inept vanity project in a terrible location, unneeded, ever again.'
