This coming Monday has been circled on quite a few calendars by Cumberland County residents. That’s when the official public hearing will take place with the county’s planning commission, discussing the proposed conditional use permit for the “initial” phase of the Green Ridge landfill. But there appears to be some confusion over what is and isn’t taking place, as well as what happens afterward. And so, it seemed like a good time to go over some details and answer some questions. 

First of all, let’s go ahead and rip off the bandaid. This is not the final vote. This is the public hearing, where residents can give their take on the requested permit for the landfill. After the hearing is over, the planning commission will then have the option of either taking a vote and making a recommendation to the board of supervisors or postponing that until next month, to think and consider what’s discussed during the hearing. 

That last part is something that’s caused confusion for several people. The planning commission will make a recommendation, either to support or reject the proposal, but either way, it still ends up with the board of supervisors. Even if planning commission members all vote to recommend denial of the permit, the case still moves on. Why? Because planning commissions are advisory groups in Virginia, meaning they can make a recommendation, but it’s up to the county board of supervisors to agree or disagree.

“The Planning Commission can vote up or down and make recommendations as it relates to the CUP (conditional use permit),” said Cumberland Administrator Derek Stamey. “Ultimately the Board of Supervisors makes the final decision.” 

In other words, no, this doesn’t end on Monday night, regardless of how the vote goes. 

Some more questions about Monday 

‘When will we get to speak?” That’s been a question posed to The Herald several times over the last two months, as workshops were held about the Green Ridge landfill project. In each of these cases, Cumberland residents could sit and listen to the presentations, as well as questions raised by planning commission members and supervisors. There was no public comment and there were no votes taken or decisions made. These were information only sessions. At least part of that will change on Monday. 

That’s pretty much the point of a public hearing, to hear from residents. No, there is not a maximum number of people who can speak on Monday. And yes, everyone who comes and signs up will be able to talk. That last part is important, however. You need to sign the sheet of paper as you walk in to get on the list and be guaranteed a chance to speak. No sign up, no guarantee. As you walk in the door, there should be a piece of paper to sign up. You can also ask someone, as other residents will have already started signing, unless you’re the first person there. 

About the Green Ridge project 

So, to be clear, Green Ridge doesn’t have approval yet for their “initial phase”. That’s what all of this is for, to either approve or reject it. That initial phase would only have 104 acres out of the 1,177 acre site available for active dumping. That’s down from 650 acres in the original plan. 

But that doesn’t mean it would permanently be that size. Right now, Green Ridge doesn’t have the permits needed to build on or disturb wetlands, creeks and streams. Will Shewmake, an attorney with the firm Woods Rogers and representing Green Ridge, said in the Feb. 10 workshop if the company does get those permits, things would expand. 

That expansion would mean a jump from 104 acres to 350 total acres available for garbage disposal. It would also mean a significant increase in the size of the garbage mounds. The current application being considered by Cumberland allows trash to pile up to 140 feet above ground level. If Green Ridge gets to expand, they could go up to 225 feet above ground level. The biggest increase would be in the amount of trash brought in. The current application limits that to 1,500 tons of garbage a day. The expansion would allow them to haul in 3,500 tons per day. It would also increase the number of nearby homes impacted. With this “initial phase”, there are 37 houses within a half mile of the disposal area. With expansion, that would climb to 58 homes. 

But what does that translate to? What would the maximum capacity of this landfill be, District 1 Supervisor Bryan Hamlet asked back in the March 3 joint session. At full build-out, he was told, if everything is approved, it would be 30 million cubic yards. The tons in a cubic yard vary, depending on the density of the material, but the average is roughly 1.65 tons per cubic yard.

What’s in it for Cumberland? 

Another question that has been raised repeatedly is what benefit Cumberland County gets from the property. 

Host fees for the proposal would be a minimum of $640,000 annually, with another $50,000 annually from the machinery, equipment and tools tax. A payment of $25,000 each would be made each year to the county’s Environmental Science Education Program Fund and Recreational Programs Fund. Green Ridge also claimed that they’re “paying” in another way, by allegedly saving Cumberland money through free garbage disposal for all county government facilities. They claim that will save $750,000 each year. 

The company has also laid out what they claim are other ways they’re saving Cumberland residents money. That includes residents using the landfill for free waste disposal, paying for the cost of a county employee, with a $100,000 salary, to monitor the operation and the fact Cumberland would get 25 acres of land to use, once the landfill is decommissioned decades in the future. 

Green Ridge officials also have laid out ways they say they’re being a “good neighbor”. That includes paying $4,271 to buy band uniforms for Cumberland County Public Schools, giving the school district another $60,000 for a scholarship fund, $250,000 to the county to develop new parks, $100,000 to the county to help with public safety, $500,000 to reimburse the county for costs related to rezoning and $500,000 to reimburse Cumberland for costs related to the rezoning process. 

More permits still needed for Green Ridge

In addition to asking Cumberland for a conditional use permit, Green Ridge is going through the Part B process of its state approval process as well. That’s where they go over the design with state officials, along with the liner system, stormwater management, groundwater monitoring, landfill gas management and a post closure plan for down the road. Also, what would all those trucks do to Pinegrove Road? The Virginia Department of Transportation will have to sign off on that as well.