A grassroots group of concerned citizens, Stop The Mega-Dump (STMD), continues to seek court and legislative relief from the improper and illegal approval process used for expanding the existing landfill in Cortland. The citizen group was dealt another setback, as expected, by the Illinois Appellate Court.
We have reviewed respondents’ responses to STMD’s arguments and conclude that STMD has not sustained its burden on review. Therefore, we affirm the PCB’s decision. — 2012 IL App (2d) 110579; No. 2-11-0579; Opinion filed October 29, 2012
In their ruling the Appellate Court described STMD as “a group of citizens opposing the landfill expansion.” Actually, it is a group of citizens alarmed about a process that allows the government to sell its police authority (and responsibility) to protect the citizens to a profit-motive corporation seeking to expand an already leaking landfill next to an elementary school. STMD has been clear from the beginning that the opposition is to this process and has repeatedly said they would be satisfied with a restarting of the application process guided unbiased, scientific examination instead of so-called expert witnesses paid by the applicant to testify on their behalf.
STMD does believe the County Board rubber-stamped Waste Management’s application because it was desperate for a revenue stream to pay for a $30 million jail expansion. As part of the approval process, Waste Management and the County Board entered into a host agreement under which Waste Management would pay $120 million in host fees over 30 years. In Illinois it’s called Pay to Play.
STMD has 21 days to file an appeal. For more information about Stop The Mega-Dump or to contribute to the legal fund, click here.
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2 Comments
Mark, some of us see this as a looming potential disaster. The problem is that this is not an Irwin Allen movie with George Kennedy saying,”I told them not to…”
This is real life. Now that we all really know that De Kalb county can have real earthquakes, are any of us illogical enough to believe that a liner (or giant garbage bag) is really going to safeguard our precious ground water supply from contamination?
When I have visited my grandson at the Cortland School, the current landfill stinks in the south schoolyard where the children play. A bigger dump will not smell any sweeter (Perhaps that should be the motto here).
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Please keep in mind that There are still some individuals on the county board who voted FOR the Mega Dump that are running for re-election in contested districts. in some cases there are three candidates are vying for two open positions. Here is a listing of those county board representatives do not deserve your vote: District 2 – John Emerson; District 3 – Riley Oncken; District 4 – Anita Jo Turner; District 9 – Julia Fauci; District 9 – Paul Stoddard; and District 12 – Jeffery Metzger. Keep in mind these individuals sold out the citizens of DeKalb County. It should also be noted that Mega-Dump supporters (District 7 Sally DeFauw and District 6 Ruth Ann Tobias) are also running for re-election in uncontested districts.