Bill Text: HI SB2902 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Community Landfills; Alternative Waste Methods; Landfill Reuse; Task Force
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-08 - (S) The committee on ENE deferred the measure. [SB2902 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2012-SB2902-Introduced.html
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THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
2902 |
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TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2012 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
relating to landfills.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that the island of Oahu generates approximately 3,000 tons of waste daily or 6.8 pounds for every person on the island. On Oahu, there are only two existing landfills: the Waimanalo gulch landfill, which is the only existing landfill capable of receiving the total daily output of non-reusable municipal solid waste, and the Nanakuli landfill, which permits only construction and demolition waste. In 1990, the city built a waste-to-energy facility, the Honolulu program of waste energy recovery, to dispose of most residential and general commercial trash. Although the city's goal was to minimize the use of landfills by disposing more than one million tons of waste annually by using the Honolulu program of waste energy recovery, the waste-to-energy facility is already operating at one hundred and ten per cent of its capacity.
The legislature also finds that despite a fifteen-acre expansion of the Waimanalo gulch landfill in 2003, which was intended to yield five more years of waste storage and give the city more time to establish recycling programs and settle on alternative waste disposal methods, Oahu still remains reliant on a landfill that has already reached its capacity.
The legislature further finds that beyond capacity issues and a lack of alternative waste disposal methods, the State will also need to address the reuse of the Waimanalo gulch landfill upon its closure and environmental issues, such as beach contamination caused by wastewater overflow.
The purpose of this Act is to establish a task force within the environmental health administration of the department of health to study landfill alternatives and landfill reuse.
SECTION 2. (a) There is established a task force within the environmental health administration of the department of health for administrative purposes. The purpose of the task force shall be to study landfill alternatives and landfill reuse options. The task force shall convene within thirty days after the effective date of this Act.
(b) The task force shall be composed of eleven members selected by the governor and shall include:
(1) Two representatives from each of the following: county of Hawaii, county of Kauai, county of Maui, and the city and county of Honolulu;
(2) One member from the house of representatives;
(3) One member from the senate; and
(4) One member from the University of Hawaii environmental center.
(c) The task force shall:
(1) Study and determine the feasibility of landfill alternatives, additional landfill expansions, and landfill reuse options;
(2) Study financing options, including "host fees"; and
(3) Conduct public hearings to assess public approval and concern.
(d) In carrying out its duties under this section, the task force may request staff assistance from the department of health and other appropriate state and county executive agencies.
(e) The members of the task force shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses, including travel expenses, necessary for the performance of their duties.
(f) The director of health shall submit a report of the activities of the task force, including recommendations and proposed legislation, to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2013 regular session. The task force shall be dissolved on June 30, 2013.
SECTION 3. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Community Landfills; Alternative Waste Methods; Landfill Reuse; Task Force
Description:
Establishes a task force to assess the feasibility of landfill alternatives and landfill reuse.
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
