WASILLA -- An Anchorage company looking for a place to dump waste generated by a thriving construction and demolition recycling business at Ship Creek has put on hold its state permit for a contentious landfill near Palmer.
Central Monofill Services on April 14 withdrew a permit application before the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to put shredded debris on the site, according to a state official.
The proposed debris dump, classified as an "inert monofill" and subject to few state regulations, generated loud criticism from hundreds of nearby residents concerned about the potential for groundwater contamination at the 35-acre site located over an already unstable water table.
The company was also seeking approval for the fill from the Matanuska-Susitna Borough but has so far failed to get it.
A borough appeals board last month rejected Central's proposal after the company appealed a December rejection of a borough permit by the planning commission. It was the company's third try: Along with last year's denial, the planning commission also voted down Central's first application for a monofill near Palmer in 2013.
Company owners are still deciding whether to appeal the latest borough decision to the state Superior Court, according to Bill Ingaldson, a Palmer attorney who represented Central during the Mat-Su process.
The permit application is "on hold so DEC isn't doing all this work for it if it's not something they're going to appeal," Ingaldson said.
Any future use of the Palmer site for a monofill will require a new permit application, according to an email from Lori Aldrich, DEC's regional solid waste program manager in Anchorage.
Central has said the Palmer site, and another monofill proposed in Chugiak, would allow the company to avoid municipal landfill rates. Central Recycling Services, which shares owners with Central Monofill and operates the Ship Creek recycling facility, last year filed a lawsuit against the municipality over tipping fees at the landfill.
The company earlier this year also asked the state to put on hold a separate DEC permit for the Chugiak site due to concerns over adjacent contamination from an old municipal landfill. The Chugiak monofill is no longer a permitted use under a proposed development plan for the area submitted by landowner Eklutna Inc.
Central co-owner Shane Durand didn't respond to a request Thursday for additional information, including whether the company is looking for replacement monofill locations.