MAINE MONITOR • July 19, 2024
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection will decide by August 23 whether a proposed expansion of the state’s largest landfill would provide a substantial benefit to the public, a required step before the landfill’s manager, the state’s Bureau of General Services, can apply to increase the capacity of the facility. If approved, the expansion will add 11 years to the operating capacity of Juniper Ridge, which takes in roughly half of the state’s waste, and add 61 acres to its footprint. Without the expansion, Juniper Ridge will run out of room by early 2028. Expanding the landfill, said Old Town resident Ed Spencer, “might partially benefit most Mainers, but it certainly will have negative environmental quality impacts for local humans. This is a sacrifice.”