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Making a mountain out of a landfill

Plans to raise height restrictions for the mound of garbage at the Pinellas County landfill have upset nearby businesses.

By WILL VAN SANT
Published September 30, 2006

[Times photo: Jim Damaske]

Workers at the Pinellas landfill call the bulldozed mound of ash and unburned garbage “the Hill.” Nearby businesses don’t want it to get much taller.

Geography buffs and climbing enthusiasts, take note: The highest point in Pinellas County could one day be a mound of burned garbage known as "the Hill."

Built from the compacted remains of our collective rubbish, the 150-foot tall mass would eclipse a 110-foot spot on a golf course in Countryside that now enjoys the status of Pinellas' highest point.

To be sure, the Hill would not be expected to achieve this lofty distinction until 2070, and it will happen only if the state Department of Environmental Protection agrees to raise height restrictions at the Pinellas landfill.

The DEP announced in late August that it would grant the needed permits. But on Sept. 11, property owners at nearby Carillon Business Park, home to some of the area's largest corporations, asked the agency to reconsider.

Concerned about environmental and health impacts - as well as diminished property values - the Carillon businesses don't want the landfill to dominate area skies.

"It will be counter to the ambience of the community," said Elliot Stern, a senior vice president at Raymond James & Associates, which has headquarters in the park.

The 704-acre landfill, in the Gateway area of St. Petersburg, south of Ulmerton Road, is home to the county's waste-to-energy trash incinerator.

Eighty-five percent of the garbage brought to the landfill can be burned. The electricity produced is sold to Progress Energy and supplies about 40,000 Pinellas homes.

Last year, the landfill handled 1.2-million tons of refuse. For every 3,000 tons that is incinerated, 1,000 tons of ash is produced.

Landfill workers call the bulldozed mound of ash and unburned garbage "the Hill."

To the west of 28th Street, the Hill rises to about 75 feet. Current permits limit the maximum height to 95 feet. To the east of 28th Street, the limit is 50 feet, but no filling has begun there.

Landfill operators - who don't need to expand their facility, only build upward - expect to reach their permitted heights around 2040. By getting the maximums raised on both sides of 28th Street to 150 feet, they think the landfill's life can be extended by at least 30 years.

To properly manage the Hill now, operators say, they need to know how high they eventually can go. And if they can't build higher, exporting waste to other parts of Florida will have to be explored, which could increase disposal costs, they say.

Stern, of Raymond James, said the county is taking the easy route and not exploring alternative, cost-effective methods of waste disposal. And he's skeptical of county claims that current height limits won't be exceeded for decades.

"Once the permit is granted," he said, "they can do it anytime they want."

At their nearest point, the landfill and the business park are four-tenths of a mile apart, the county estimates. Roosevelt Boulevard runs between them. If raised to 150 feet, the Hill would be as tall as a 12-story building.

On Monday, DEP lawyers denied the Carillon businesses a hearing, but gave them 14 days to bring forward additional information to support their cause.

Whether the Hill ever does become Pinellas' highest peak, it already offers superb views. From the summit, you can take in both the Tampa and St. Petersburg skylines, solid waste operations manager Deb Bush said.

"I'm thinking about building a little tower up there with one of those pairs of binoculars that you can put a quarter in," Bush joked.

Will Van Sant can be reached at 445-4166 or vansant@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 30, 2006, 06:06:26]