NMED Issues Permit for Camino Real Landfill Permit Despite Opposition of Sunland Park Residents

The bad news related to environmental matters just keeps on coming from the administration of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez. Today, New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) Secretary David F. Martin issued a decision granting the Camino Real landfill’s application for modification and renewal of its permit. The New Mexico Environmental Law Center (NMELC) had filed a motion for Robert Ardovino and Luz Vargas, two Sunland Park residents, asking Secretary Martin to deny the application on the grounds that it was inaccurate and not in compliance with New Mexico’s Solid Waste Management Regulations.

“Unfortunately, New Mexico took a grand stumble backwards in allowing industry to regulate itself,” said Robert Ardovino, movant and Sunland Park resident. “This ruling squarely puts industry before the safety and well being of a very poor and under-served community.”

“For years, El Paso’s trash ended up in Sunland Park, to the tune of nearly 90% of the waste in the landfill,” explained Douglas Meiklejohn, NMELC attorney and Executive Director. “However, in August 2010, the City of El Paso adopted an ordinance that will keep El Paso’s waste in El Paso. This means an end to the waste stream from El Paso Sunland Park; it also means that the landfill application’s representation that almost all of its waste will come from El Paso is not accurate.”

The New Mexico Solid Waste Management Regulations require that a permit disclose the origin of the waste to be disposed of in the landfill. The landfill application indicates that almost 90% of the waste for the landfill will come from the city of El Paso. The motion filed by the NMELC stated that this is not accurate because the City of El Paso has enacted a flow control ordinance, which mandates that, beginning in September, all waste that is generated or found in El Paso is to be disposed of in facilities operated by the City of El Paso. The motion also stated that when the permit is approved, the landfill will be ineligible to receive waste from El Paso for nine of the 10 years for which a permit is sought. For that reason, the application was not accurate and should be denied, according to NMELC.

The Secretary asserted that it would not be proper to deny the application for the landfill permit because the El Paso flow control ordinance is not yet in effect.

“That assertion ignores the reality that the flow control ordinance will be in effect for nine of the 10 years that the permit covers,” said Meiklejohn. “For that reason, the application for the permit is not in compliance with the Solid Waste Management Regulations.”

Mr. Meiklejohn will be conferring with Mr. Ardovino and Ms. Vargas to determine how to proceed.

Background
For some background on the Camino Real permit and community opposition to its renewal, check out this article on Clearly New Mexico. Residents and other interested parties had been hoping for a decision on the 10-year permit extension by previous NMED Secretary Ron Curry before he left office on December 31, 2010. It never came. In February of 2010, the state appeals court had sent the matter of a permit back to Curry, saying he couldn't just issue a one-year permit, as he had in 2009. He then twice postponed a decision on the 10-year renewal.