WHAT
Hudson Valley Air Quality Coalition hosts Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency Executive Director Marc Rider to discuss proposed $100m + put or pay anaerobic digestion facility
WHERE
Virtual and open to the public
WHEN
Thursday, February 26 at 6:00pm
HOW
Zoom in: tinyurl.com/fxn8uk4r
Hudson Valley Air Quality Coalition (HVAQ) will host Marc Rider, Executive Director of Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRRA), at its February 26 virtual meeting for a public question-and-answer session regarding the proposed anaerobic digestion facility open to all.
HVAQ raised serious concerns about the proposed facility. The plan relies on mixed-waste inputs, increasing the risk of contamination in compost and soil amendments. Proposed “put-or-pay” contracts could lock the County into decades of disposal obligations, limiting its ability to reduce waste over time. The project includes injecting biomethane into the existing fracked-gas system, raising climate concerns, and its high capital costs could divert funding away from proven Zero Waste strategies such as reduction, reuse, repair, recycling, and source-separated composting.
In January, the Hudson Valley Air Quality Coalition (HVAQ) urged the Ulster County Legislature and the Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRRA) to pause consideration of an anaerobic digestion facility until Ulster County completes and publicly releases a Zero Waste Implementation Plan (ZWIP).
This request echoes a January 8 letter from a coalition of partners to Ulster County. Before investing in this costly new waste infrastructure, the County should complete and publicly adopt a comprehensive Zero Waste Implementation Plan that clearly outlines how it will achieve its stated Zero Waste goals.
HVAQ will host Marc Rider, Executive Director of UCRRA, at its February 26 virtual meeting for a public question-and-answer session regarding the proposed anaerobic digestion facility open to all. The meeting begins at 6:00 p.m., with Mr. Rider expected to join around 6:45 p.m. following the Environmental Health Project presentation. Zoom link: tinyurl.com/fxn8uk4r