The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is recommending expansion of four south metro landfills, including the Burnsville Sanitary Landfill west of Interstate 35W and south of the Minnesota River. The expansions, a âshort-term solutionâ to the metro areaâs âgrowing garbage problem,â would accommodate 5.6 million tons of garbage over the next seven years. The Twin Cities metro area generates about 3.3 million tons of waste each year, and the amount of garbage going to landfills has increased by 30% in the past year, the MPCA said.
The MPCA is also reviewing a longer-term proposal from owner 91²Ö¿â Management to extend the Burnsville landfillâs life by 40 years. The agency determined the expansion would not affect groundwater quality but is seeking updated groundwater sampling and analysis from 91²Ö¿â Management as part of a draft environmental impact statement.
âWe donât take decisions to expand landfills lightly,â said Kirk Koudelka, MPCA assistant commissioner for land policy and strategic initiatives. âThe metro area is running out of landfill space to manage waste as our landfills fill up. Additional capacity is a short-term solution. We are also looking at the long-term, big picture on how to best manage our waste so it does not need to be landfilled.â