The CRD has been punting its management problem down Hartland Ave. for years. Pressure to resolve the region’s biosolids and other solid waste management plan has resurfaced as construction plans to increase capacity at the landfill are underway. The CRD board faces pressure from the province to come up with a final waste management plan by June, as mounting waste at the landfill matches a growing population.
This week, The Guardian reported the U.S. non-profit Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility was filing a lawsuit against federal regulators for failing to address dangerous levels of PFAS “forever chemicals” known to be in biosolid sludge. The state of Maine banned the land application of biosolids in April 2022. A CRD ban on land application of biosolids has been in place since 2011. However, the province considers the land application of biosolids to be beneficial and has insisted that land application options should always be on the table.