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www.CTGreenGuide.com SUMMER 2015 • Connecticut Green Guide 27 landfill meets state and federal regulations. Opened by the city of Hart- ford in 1940, the landfill has un- dergone sweep- ing changes reflecting evolving views on waste disposal across the country, particularly in Connecticut. What started as an open-burning dump led to an incinerator on the prop- erty from 1953 to 1977. After the CRRA's creation in 1982, the agency leased the landfill from the city, and began accepting trash from 44 cit- ies and towns until 1988, when CRRA opened the Hartford trash-to-energy plant, as the state became a national leader in burning garbage for electricity. At that point, the landfill's purpose was to receive combustor ash and non-processable materials from the plant, along with bulky waste. The last waste delivery at the landfill occurred in 2008, when the first of four phases of capping began. Not long after, Connecticut's appetite for trash-to-ener- gy started to fade; the state now is focused on recover- ing as much of the waste stream as possible, hoping to hit a 60 percent recycling rate by 2024. "As a state, we have long recognized that a landfill is not a good use of land," said Robert Isner, director of the Waste Engineering Enforcement Division at the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection. "It's a waste of the material value of everything. We're placing a lot of emphasis on recovering the material value of waste." Chris Nelson, DEEP supervisor of the sustainable materials management recycling program, said a major focus of the state are the three Rs. "If it can't be reduced, reused or recycled, we look to have energy recovered," Nelson said. "That's why we have moved away from landfills to resource recovery authorities." The state's solid waste management plan now calls for diversion of items from the waste stream, planning for 1976 The state Department of Environmental Protection issued the City of Hartford its first permit for a 70-acre landfill in the North Meadows. 1977 DEP permitted the 38-acre expansion to the North Meadows Landfill for municipal solid waste, but the city never used the extra prop- erty as space remained in the original 70 acres. 1977 — 1982 Air regulations forced the closure of the incinerator. Hartford then dumped all solid waste in the North Meadows Landfill. The New Plan The Connecticut Modernizing Recycling Working Group recommends the follow- ing goals for a waste stream that yields greater production. • Promote an environmentally beneficial infrastructure that balances the need for both stability and responsiveness under market conditions. • Foster economic development and job creation through increased materials re- covery that make raw materials available to in-state manufacturers. • Reduce economic, operational, and administrative burdens on munici- palities and individuals by encouraging modernization of pricing systems, data systems, and phasing in the potential for regional services. • Redefine the role of MIRA and the role and value of multiple regional solid waste authorities in governance, responsibilities, and operations. SOURCE: DEEP David Bodendorf, MIRA senior environmental engineer, stands among the solar panels installed at the landfill, making it the first in the state with such as array. PHOTO | PABLO ROBLES