To the Editor:
Your article "Landfill Decision Deferred to July 29" [Connection, June 19-25, 2014] reporting on the controversial Lorton landfill extension proposed by EnviroSolutions (ESI) omits two strategic facts that pertain to the discussion. The first is that developers are tending increasingly to recycle construction waste, rather than send it to landfills. This will undoubtedly impact a planned closure date, plus any projected revenues the County plans to obtain from ESI landfill operations should be reduced accordingly.
The second is that any green energy project at the site would need a distribution grid to deliver the power output to consumers. No grid currently exists, yet this fundamental aspect of planning is conveniently left out of the discussion. Who would build this and who would pay for it? What additional impact would this have on the area?
One has to wonder what is so compelling about the relationship between ESI and the Board of Supervisors to warrant one deferral after another. As early as 2006 ESI sought special treatment from the County, but couldn’t deliver on their promises. Plans for the park they promised to develop when the landfill closes have been scrapped. More recently they have been allowed to revise their proposal time and again, for reasons understood only by the Board of Supervisors.
Some County Commissioners, including Chairman Sharon Bulova, favor compromise with ESI; but the community distrusts ESI based on their past performance, and does not want their project to go forward. Chairman Bulova, it’s well past time to deny ESI’s application and look at other resident-friendly options for the use of this land, prominently located within an R-1 (Residential) zone.
Nancy Piotter
Fairfax Station