Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024
(a) Landfills which accept only vegetative
waste shall be ancillary to an agricultural use of the parcel on which they are
located.
(b) Nothing in this Part
shall be construed to prohibit the disposal of vegetative waste on the parcel
on which it was generated, provided that the vegetative clearing or harvesting
is otherwise authorized by this Plan. For agricultural operations, the disposal
of vegetative waste on non-contiguous parcels in common ownership which have an
active production history as a unit or where a farm management plan has been
prepared which demonstrates that the parcels will be farmed as a unit, shall
also be permitted.
(c) All
landfills that ceased operation on or after September 23, 1980, if located in
the Preservation Area or on or after January 14, 1981, if located in the
Protection Area shall be capped with an impermeable material unless it can be
clearly demonstrated that:
1. The landfill
accepted only vegetative waste or construction debris for disposal;
2. An alternative means of addressing the
public health and ecological risks associated with the landfill is available
that will afford an equivalent level of protection of the resources of the
Pinelands than would be provided if the landfill were capped with an
impermeable material;
3. No
leachate plume associated with the landfill exists and the landfill is not
generating leachate; or
4. A
leachate plume associated with the landfill exists, but poses no significant
ecological risk to wetlands.
(d) Plans to cap landfills or carry out the
alternative treatment methods set forth in (c)2 above shall be submitted to the
Commission by May 20, 1997. Capping or alternative treatment of all landfills
shall begin immediately following approval of such plans by the Commission
pursuant to
N.J.A.C.
7:50-4.51 through 4.58, except when an
extension pursuant to (e) below has been granted.
(e) An extension of the requirement set forth
in (d) above concerning the commencement of capping or alternative treatment
methods immediately upon obtaining approval by the Commission shall be granted,
provided that it can be clearly demonstrated that there are presently
insufficient funds reasonably available to meet that requirement and one of the
following standards is met and continues to be met:
1. The levels of chemical constituents in the
leachate plume associated with the landfill do not exceed background levels of
those pollutants as measured at the parcel line and the plume is not moving
offsite; or
2. The levels of
chemical constituents in the leachate plume associated with the landfill exceed
background levels of those pollutants or the plume is moving offsite but:
i. The plume does not pose a significant
public health risk, as determined by the Department of Environmental
Protection; and
ii. The plume does
not pose a significant ecological risk, as determined by examining whether the
plume is located within an undisturbed subwatershed or is likely to impact
publicly owned conservation lands or systems which support known populations of
threatened or endangered species.
(f) In the event that an extension is granted
pursuant to (e) above, capping or alternative treatment of the landfill in
question must proceed immediately upon sufficient funds being obtained. Timely
application for State or Federal funding assistance shall be made when such
assistance becomes available.
(g)
Closure techniques to reduce the volume or surface area of a landfill to be
capped, including landfill mining, shall be permitted.
(h) Closure techniques involving the use of
non-sludge derived composted materials, vegetative waste or the following
recycled materials: source-separated non-putrescible glass, paper, plastic or
cardboard; waste concrete, asphalt, brick or block; wood that has been
processed through a chipper; or other similar materials, excluding those
materials classified as dry industrial wastes (Type 27) pursuant to
N.J.A.C.
7:26-2.13(g)1 vi, for
landfill caps or covers shall be permitted, provided that the standards of this
section and
N.J.A.C.
7:50-6.81 through 6.87 are met and that the
use of such techniques is part of a total financial commitment that ensures
that final capping is completed. For purposes of this section, the use of such
techniques shall not be considered land application of waste. Nothing herein
shall be construed as permitting the height or extent of a landfill to be
raised beyond what is necessary to complete final contouring to enable
impermeable capping or provide for a limited final cover over the impermeable
cap.
(i) Subject to the procedural
and substantive requirements of this Plan, the landfill operated by the Cape
May County Municipal Utilities Authority that was authorized to stay in
operation after August 8, 1990 as a result of waivers of strict compliance
previously approved by the Pinelands Commission pursuant to the provisions of
this Plan may continue in operation provided that:
1. All landfilling is located within the
Pinelands Town management area on approximately 167 acres of land owned by the
Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority as of May 1, 2006, north of a
line running parallel approximately 900 feet south of the boundary between
Upper Township and Woodbine Borough;
2. All landfilling occurs in the following
areas:
i. At the previously approved cells
1A, 1B and 1C and on up to 42 acres of land which are contiguous with those
existing cells, totaling approximately 93 acres; and
ii. On an additional 74 acres of land located
northeast and southeast of the areas identified in (i)2i above;
3. The height of all existing
cells may be increased beyond the currently permitted elevations subject to the
approval of the Department of Environmental Protection. The height of any
future cells shall be as approved by the Department of Environmental
Protection;
4. Except as otherwise
permitted by this Part, landfilling is limited to those wastes previously
authorized by the Pinelands Commission and the Department of Environmental
Protection;
5. Landfill mining
operations may occur within the areas authorized for landfilling pursuant to
(i)2 above;
6. Prior to May 1,
2006, the Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority shall impose a
permanent deed restriction on all lands owned by it in the Pinelands Area as of
May 1, 2006. Said deed restriction shall be specifically enforceable by the
Pinelands Commission and shall:
i. Prohibit
any landfilling on lands owned by the Cape May County Municipal Utilities
Authority in the Pinelands Area as of May 1, 2006, except on those lands
authorized for landfilling pursuant to (i)2 above; and
ii. Prohibit any development on those lands
owned by the Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority as of May 1, 2006
which are located north of the areas authorized for landfilling pursuant to
(i)2 above, consisting of approximately 90 acres.
7. In mitigation for the impacts upon the
resources of the Pinelands caused by the landfill expansion and the continued
use of the landfill after May 1, 1996:
i. A
payment of $ 2.04 per ton of waste disposed in the landfill after May 1, 1996
shall be made to the Pinelands Commission by the operator of the landfill. Said
payments shall be made until $ 2.25 million has been paid to the Pinelands
Commission. Said payments shall be made quarterly within 45 days of the end of
any quarter, with the first quarter ending on August 1, 1996. As an alternative
to said quarterly payments, the Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority
and the Pinelands Commission may agree to the Authority's making a present
value payment to the Pinelands Commission of the equivalent, based upon an
agreed upon formula, to the $ 2.25 million paid quarterly as set forth above.
Any such present value payment shall be made prior to May 1, 1996;
ii. A present value payment of $ 4,651,045 as
of December 31, 2004 shall be made to the Pinelands Commission by the operator
of the landfill based upon the projected landfilling capacity or tonnage gained
as a result of the expansion permitted pursuant to (i)2ii above and one-half of
the escalated host community benefit. Said payment shall be prior to May 1,
2006; and
iii. Should the total
tonnage of solid waste materials landfilled during any five-year increment
exceed the projections for that period upon which the required payment in
(c)7ii above was based, a payment shall be made to the Pinelands Commission of
the difference between the number of tons received and the number of tons
originally projected, multiplied by one-half of then prevailing host community
benefit paid to Upper Township and the Borough of Woodbine by the operator of
the landfill. Such payment shall be in the form of a lump sum amount to be paid
to the Commission by the operator of the landfill prior to April 30th of the
first year immediately following the completion of each five year incremental
calculation period. This analysis shall be conducted beginning May 1, 2011 and
continue until 2034. In the event that an Act of God, including but not limited
to floods and or hurricane category winds, cause the total tons landfilled to
exceed the projected amount, the Commission may determine that all or a portion
of the excess tonnage payment is unnecessary for a particular year;
and
8. Use of funds:
i. Funds transmitted to the Commission
pursuant to (i)7i above shall be used solely for the acquisition of
conservation and recreation lands throughout the Pinelands National Reserve.
The Commission shall devote at least eight percent of those funds to purchases
in Cape May County. The Commission, where practicable, will seek matching funds
for the funds used for acquisition in Cape May County.
ii. To the extent that the Commission elects
to use any portion of the funds transmitted to the Commission pursuant to
(i)7ii or iii above for the acquisition of conservation and recreation lands in
the Pinelands National Reserve, the Commission shall devote at least eight
percent of the funds to be used for acquisition to purchases in Cape May
County.
