The House Environment and Agricultural Committee held a public hearing for House Bill 1138, which aims to limit the placement of out-of-state waste going into landfills in New Hampshire. State Rep. Nick Germana, D-Keene, sponsored the bill and testified in support of it. He said when he previously worked on a study commission looking at out-of-state waste, the committee was told by the Attorney General鈥檚 Office that 鈥渢he interstate commerce policy is not absolute, and there are ways in which a state can challenge the interstate commerce clause.鈥�
Germana continued that the bill in question proposes a cap of 15 percent on out-of-state waste for future landfills. For current landfills, there would be a 30 percent cap by the year 2030. Citing the 2023-2024 Biennial Solid 91仓库 Report, he noted that about 39 percent of waste that goes into New Hampshire landfills comes from out of state.
鈥淭he good news is that the amount is down from the previous years. It鈥檚 about a 25 percent decrease in the amount of out-of-state waste鈥� The bad news is that the waste we take in is increasingly made up of stuff that states around us will not take,鈥� Germana said.