Statement of Senator Warner, June 17, 1999

Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing to review the different proposals introduced by my colleagues as well as the legislation introduced by Senator Robb and myself to give our States and local governments authority to manage the disposal of municipal waste within their borders.

For several years, the Committee on Environment and Public Works, on which I am privileged to serve, has considered many legislative proposals to convey authority to States and localities to begin to address this serious problem. Unfortunately, no legislation has been enacted since this serious problem first surfaced in the early 1990s.

Today, large volumes of waste are traveling from Northeastern states to Mid-west and Mid-Atlantic states. Over the past few years, the amount of waste traveling across state lines has greatly increased and projections are that interstate waste shipments from certain states will continue to grow.

Most States and localities are responsible in ensuring that adequate capacity exists to accommodate municipal waste generated within each community. I regret, however, that the evidence available today shows that there are specific situations where State and local governments are neglecting responsible environmental stewardship.

The result of this neglect is that other States such as my home state of Virginia are bearing the burden of disposing of waste exporting states. These State and local governments currently have no authority to refuse this waste or even to control the amount of waste that is sent for disposal on a daily basis.

We must strike a balance between the rights of free enterprise to deal in waste and the rights of citizens of states to protect themselves from less controlled, excessive imports and the negative impacts on our quality of life and environment. For Virginia may I also add, we are proud of our heritage in our forefathers devising our system of democracy and free enterprise. But now we rank at the very top as recipients of waste.

The Virginia General Assembly passed laws this year to self-regulate trash disposal and self-limit dumping. As expected, these laws passed with overwhelming support of the people of Virginia but now face lawsuits in federal courts deeming these state laws unconstitutional.

These lawsuits challenge Virginia's right to protect her waterways and landscape from the uncontrolled expansion of landfills.

Stemming the flow of trash into Virginia is as much a matter of public safety and responsible public policy as it is a common sense matter. A recent series of articles in the Washington Post detailed federal safety records showing the rise in serious accidents involving trash haulers in Virginia along the I-95 corridor, barge leaks into the James River, and the rise in metals found in the groundwater at two mega-fills.

These mega-fills challenge the imagination. Picture a mountain of garbage as tall as the Washington Monument and 994 football fields wide. That's how big a mega-fill in Sussex County, Virginia alone would be if built out as planned to accommodate out of state trash not agreed to by Virginia's state and local community leaders.

The legislation I have cosponsored, S. 533, recognizes that in the normal course of business it is necessary for some amount of waste to travel across State lines, particularly in circumstances where there are large urban areas located at State borders. S. 533 will not close down State borders or prevent any waste shipments.

States will have, however, for the first time, the ability to effectively manage and plan for the disposal out-of-State waste along with waste generated within their borders.

Specifically, S.533 will allow States who are today receiving 1 million tons of waste or more yearly to control the growth of these waste shipments. My bill does not mandate that states take any specific action -it only gives them the authority should they choose to do so.

These States would be permitted to freeze at 1998 levels the amount of waste they are receiving or, if they decided, they could determine the amount of out-of-State waste they can safely handle. Today, they have no voice, but this legislation will give all citizens the right to participate in these important waste disposal decisions.

For all States and localities, protections would be provided to ensure that all interstate waste must be handled pursuant to a host community agreement. These voluntary agreements between the local community receiving the waste and the industry disposing of the waste have allowed some local governments to determine waste disposal activities within their borders.

According to the Constitution, Congress has the authority to give the states the latitude and flexibility they need to address the legitimate environmental, health and safety concerns whose overly onerous scope is unfairly inherited by states like Virginia.

I ask my colleagues to give fair consideration to S. 533 and the testimony we are privileged to receive today so we can develop a fair and equitable resolution to this problem.