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Mr. Chairman, I welcome this opportunity to testify before
you on an issue that has long been of particular concern to me and the citizens
of Pennsylvania that I represent; the issue of interstate shipment of municipal
solid waste. I commend you, the ranking member, and the committee for your
leadership in reviewing a practice that threatens our environment and our public
health and safety.
Since the late 1980s the tonnage of interstate trash imports
in several states across the nation has risen dramatically. In response, I have
reintroduced legislation that would allow states with comprehensive management
plans for the disposal of all waste generated within their own borders to limit
the importation of out-of-state trash, and to form voluntary regional compacts
with other states to import or export their trash. In fact, this bill, H.R. 667,
the Solid Waste Compact Act, was the first bill to address this important issue
in the 107th Congress. Additionally, I am an original cosponsor of other
legislation we will discuss today, H.R. 1213, the Solid Waste Interstate
Transportation Act, and H.R. 1927, the Solid Waste International Transportation
Act.
Total interstate waste shipments continue to increase as
older local landfills close and the waste management industry consolidates. My
state of Pennsylvania is f orced to accept more garbage from other states than
any other state in the nation, by far. In 2000, Pennsylvania imported 9.8
million tons of municipal solid waste and 2.5 million tons of other
non-hazardous waste from other states, an increase of almost 2 million tons from
the 10.4 million tons of out of state trash imported the previous year. In 1999,
out-of-state trash made up 42.8% of the annual total waste disposal in my state.
This past year, 20 other states reported increased imports of out-of-state
trash. Besides Pennsylvania, states such as Virginia, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois, Wisconsin, and Oregon share these concerns and each import over a
million tons of out-of-state trash annually. Further, New Hampshire, New York,
New Jersey, Kentucky, South Carolina, Georgia, and Nevada, each import over a
half million tons of out-of-state trash annually.
From my perspective, the legislation offered by my colleagues
and me is an attempt to put into action two important ideals that are often
talked about in Washington –
protecting the environment and promoting local control. It would protect the
environment by limiting the current practice of transporting garbage hundreds of
extra miles from the source, which increases air pollution. It would promote
local control by giving states, which already have the duty to ensure that solid
waste is disposed of properly, the right to determine whether to accept the
waste from other states and nations.
This legislation is all the more crucial in light of the
tragic loss of two lives in a recent collision in my district with a truck
carrying out-of-state trash. My district includes part of Monroe County,
Pennsylvania, where two people were killed last January on Interstate 80 when a
truck carrying out-of-state garbage lost control and crashed into their cars.
The driver, who was headed for the Keystone Sanitary Landfill near Scranton,
Pennsylvania, walked away with minor injuries and was charged with two counts of
homicide by vehicle and two counts of involuntary manslaughter.
In May 2001, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Protection, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania
State Police launched "Operation
Clean Sweep"—surprise
trash truck inspections at every landfill, major incinerator, and at checkpoints
along the Pennsylvania Turnpike and other interstate highways. What this major
enforcement action discovered were hundreds of unsafe trash trucks –
86% of the trash trucks had safety and environmental violations and more than
one-third were taken off the road. Vehicles hauling waste into Pennsylvania were
found to have two of six brakes working, cracked frames, and operating
overweight by 30,000 to 40,000 pounds. Additionally, operators were arrested for
driving while intoxicated and with suspended licenses. This is a clear sign that
far too many trash haulers disregard state safety and environmental regulations,
which can lead to accidents like the tragedy on Interstate 80 last January.
The practice of shipping municipal solid waste thousands of
miles from its source, to be discarded across state and national boundaries, has
created an "out
of sight, out of mind"
culture. Because many communities do not experience the effects of their waste,
there is no incentive to implement waste management plans. Efforts to take
responsibility for local waste by establishing waste prevention initiatives,
recycling programs, and increased landfill and incinerator capacity wane as
trash trucks roll out of town. Further, manufacturers lack encouragement to
consider the waste management implications of their products. Products continue
to be designed and packaged without regard to their volume, toxicity or
recyclability.
Mr. Chairman, Pennsylvania and other states have taken responsibility for
waste by increasing recycling and landfill capacity and should be rewarded, not
punished, for taking this responsibility. We should work to give states the
ability to control the importation of waste so we can protect our environment,
promote local control, promote waste management initiatives, and protect the
health and safety of our constituents. I again thank you for the opportunity to
speak before you on an issue that badly needs to be addressed.
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