DALTON, N.H. — There were cheers in the North Country on Thursday as Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed legislation creating a new process to approve landfills in the state.
The bill was the culmination of years of work to protect Forest Lake State Park in Dalton.
“To see this actually come to fruition and a big turnout today, you can tell that this is something that’s galvanized this North Country community,” said Wayne Morrison of the North Country Alliance for Balanced Change.
The law, which takes effect on Sept. 8, will create a new Solid Waste Site Evaluation Committee, giving local communities more of a say in the landfill siting process.
The state will also now consider a wider range of factors when approving landfill permits.
“Now, you have to take into account things like truck traffic and business impacts, property values,” said Tom Tower of the North Country Alliance for Balanced Change.
Those were all considerations raised by people in the North Country seven years ago when Casella Waste Systems first proposed a landfill near Forest Lake State Park.
The new law does not specifically prohibit that landfill, but permits were withdrawn in June, and Ayotte continues to draw a hard line in opposition.
“There will never be a landfill here at Forest Lake,” Ayotte said. “It will be over my dead body.”
Harry Parenteau, who is about to turn 14, drew a sign and took it to a protest when he was 6 years old.
“I thought it was terrible, because I was thinking about my future,” Harry said. “Because if I have kids here and I want to come here, and that was there, I couldn’t do anything with it.”
People who live in the area who got involved and spoke up over the past several years said they’re going to stay engaged on the solid waste issue.
“We are committed to making the Site Evaluation Committee successful and continuing to improve the way New Hampshire protects the environment and reduces and effectively manages its waste,” Morrison said.
