Home → Waste Management → Juniper Ridge Landfill
Juniper Ridge Landfill
Public Meetings on Public Benefit Determination Application for Juniper Ridge Landfill
July 16, 2024
July 26, 2024
9:00 - 11:00 am
Contacts
DEP Solid Waste Project Manager: Dominique Dispirito, 207 441-0732
State owner contact: Lane Gould, Landfill Manager, Department of Administrative and Financial Services, 207-624-7345
The Juniper Ridge Landfill (JRL) is owned by the State of Maine and is part of the solid waste disposal system within the state that provides for Maine's solid waste disposal needs. For additional JRL operations information, the Maine Bureau of General Services maintains a JRL webpage.
Application for Public Benefit Determination
The application is for a public benefit determination regarding a proposed expansion of the Juniper Ridge Landfill in Old Town and Alton, Maine. In accordance with Maine laws and rules, the Commissioner must make a positive determination of substantial public benefit prior to the Department accepting an application for processing for a new or expanded solid waste disposal facility.
If approved, the proposed expansion to the Juniper Ridge Landfill, would expand the landfill footprint by 61 acres, provide 11.9 million cubic yards of capacity, and 11.3 years of life, based on their 5-year waste acceptance rate. The landfill is located in Old Town and Alton, is owned by the State of Maine operating through the Bureau of General Services, and operated by NEWSME Landfill Operations LLC.
Public Benefit Determination Project files
Application Materials
- March 13th, 2025 - Petitioners’ Reply Brief (PDF)
- February 20, 2025 - Brief for Respondents (PDF)
- February 20, 2025 - Brief for Applicants (PDF)
- January 22, 2025 - Brief for Petitioners (PDF)
- January 10, 2025 - Correspondence RE PFAS Implementation Schedule (PDF)
- December 27, 2024 - Implementation Schedule – PFAS Treatment (PDF)
- December 20, 2024 - Response to request for stay (PDF)
- December 5, 2024 - Reply to opposition to stay (PDF)
- November 22, 2024 - Opposition to application for a stay (PDF)
- November 14, 2024 - Application for a stay (PDF)
- November 12, 2024 - Petition for judicial review (PDF)
- October 2, 2024 - Final decision for PBD application (PDF)
- September 27, 2024 - Applicant response to draft PBD (PDF)
- September 19, 2024 - Maine DEP extends the deadline for public comment on the JRL PBD application to September 27 (PDF)
- September 13, 2024 - Juniper Ridge Landfill Expansion Public Benefit Determination Opportunity for Comment (PDF)
- August 15, 2024 - Press Release: DEP extends review timeline for Juniper Ridge Landfill Application for Determination of Public Benefit (PDF)
- August 13, 2024 - PBD application extension (PDF)
- August 13, 2024 - DEP time extension request (PDF)
- August 8, 2024 - BGS response to comments (PDF)
- July 30, 2024 - Department comments on the application (PDF)
Minor Revision to License #S-020700-WD-BI-N for a Modification to the Annual Oversized Bulky Waste Limit at Juniper Ridge Landfill
The application is for a minor revision to Department license #S-020700-WD-BI-N, issued June 1, 2017. The Application requests to establish a methodology and process for determining the annual Oversized Bulky Waste (OBW) limit at Juniper Ridge Landfill. Juniper Ridge Landfill is owned by the State of Maine, acting through the Bureau of General Services, and operated by NEWSME Landfill Operations, LLC.
The application was accepted for processing on June 16, 2021.
- January 30th, 2025 - 2025 Annual Oversized Bulky Waste Limit Request for Juniper Ridge Landfill (PDF)
- January 26, 2024 - 2024 Annual OBW Limit Request for Juniper Ridge Landfill (PDF)
- January 26, 2023 – 2023 Annual OBW Limit Request for Juniper Ridge Landfill (PDF)
- January 28, 2022 – 2022 Annual OBW Limit Request for Juniper Ridge Landfill (PDF)
- November 29, 2021 - Signed Solid Waste Minor Revision License (PDF)
- November 15, 2021 – Comment on Draft Minor Revision License: Edward Spencer (PDF)
- November 12, 2021 – Comment on Draft Minor Revision License: Jacquelyn Elliott (PDF)
- November 5, 2021 - Draft license decision (PDF)
- June 16, 2021 - Application acceptance letter (PDF)
- June 1, 2021 – Minor Revision Application to License #S-020700-WD-BI-N Modification to the Annual Oversized Bulky Waste Limit (PDF)
Amendment Application to License #S-020700-WD-BC-A for Continued Acceptance of In-State Municipal Solid Waste
The application is for the modification of the municipal solid waste acceptance date of March 31, 2018 in DEP license #S-020700-WD-BC-A Condition 10 as revised in Board of Environmental Protection Order #S-020700-WD-BG-Z, applicable to the existing landfill. The Juniper Ridge Landfill is owned by the State of Maine, acting through the Bureau of General Services, and operated by NEWSME Landfill Operations, LLC.
The application was accepted for processing on December 15, 2017 – Application Acceptance Letter (PDF)
- February 4, 2019 - Commissioner’s Determination on the Petition for License Suspension (PDF)
- January 17, 2019 - BGS and NEWSME Response to Petition for License Suspension (PDF)
- December 31, 2018 - Petition for License Revocation/Suspension (PDF)
- October 15, 2018 - Signed Board Order on Appeal, October 10, 2018 (PDF) and Appeal Information Sheet< (PDF)/a>
- September 28, 2018 - Board of Environmental Protection October 4, 2018 Meeting Agenda and Documents
- September 11, 2018 - Board of Environmental Protection September 20, 2018 Meeting Agenda and Documents
- Additional comments received on the Appeal by the July 12, 2018 deadline
- Comments received on the Appeal as of July 11, 2018
- Chair Parker’s Ruling on Proposed Supplemental Evidence (PDF)
- Associated Documents from the Board’s Staff: May 2, 2018 (PDF) and June 5, 2018 (PDF)
- Ed Spencer Comments on Supplemental Evidence (PDF)
- June 4, 2018 - BGS and NEWSME Comments on Evidentiary Issues (PDF)
- May 4, 2018 - Chair Parker’s response to the Motion to Disqualify (PDF)
- May 1, 2018 - Appeals to the Board of Environmental Protection on the Solid Waste License Amendment (PDF)
- March 31, 2018 - Signed Solid Waste License Amendment (PDF)
- March 30, 2018 - Comments on the Draft Amendment License
- March 29, 2018 - Comments on the Draft Amendment License
- March 23, 2018 - Public Comment Draft MSW Amendment License (PDF) Comments due by March 30, 2018 at 5:00 pm
- March 22, 2018 - Ed Spencer Comment Letter (PDF)
- March 20, 2018 - Confidentiality Request (PDF) and Confidentiality Request Response (PDF)
- March 19, 2018 - Public Meeting Transcript (February 28, 2018) (PDF)
- March 16, 2018 - Natural Resources Council of Maine Additional Comments (PDF)
- March 16, 2018 - BGS and NEWSME Response to DEP Staff’s March 12 Comments (PDF)
- March 13, 2018 - All pages of the Exhibit 11 document submitted in the March 2 posting of BGS/NEWSME Response to Comments (PDF)
- March 12, 2018 - DEP Staff Follow-up Comments to BGS/NEWSME March 1, 2018 Response to Comments Submittal (PDF)
- March 12, 2018 - Karen Marysdaughter (PDF)
- March 9, 2018 - Additional comment letters
- March 2, 2018 - BGS and NEWSME Response to DEP Staff’s February 15 Comments (PDF)
- March 2, 2018 - Comments received at public meeting
- Greg Lounder, Municipal Review Committee (MRC) (PDF)
- James N. Katsiaficas, Esq. for City of Old Town (PDF)
- Karen Fussell, City of Brewer (PDF)
- Ralph Soucier, Town of Millinocket, Solid Waste & Recycling (PDF)
- Victor Horton, Maine Resource Recovery Association (PDF)
- Dana Wardwell, City of Bangor (PDF)
- Ryan Parker, Natural Resources Council of Maine (PDF)
- March 2, 2018 - Town of Searsmont comment letter (PDF)
- February 26, 2018 - Town of Oakland comment letter (PDF)
- February 21, 2018 - Town of Sherman comment letter (PDF)
- February 20, 2018 - Coastal Resources of Maine, LLC comment letter (PDF)
- February 16, 2018 - Notice of Public Meeting on Application (PDF) (to be held February 28 at 6:00 pm at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor)
- February 15, 2018 - Staff review comments on the application (PDF)
- January 31, 2018 - Additional comments received to date since January 9
- January 29, 2018 - The Department has carefully reviewed the submitted requests for a public hearing on the proposed JRL amendment application. According to 06-096 C.M.R. ch. 2, §7(B) of the Department’s Rules Concerning the Processing of Applications and Other Administrative Matters, “the Department will hold a hearing in those instances where the Department determines there is credible conflicting technical information regarding a licensing criterion and it is likely that a hearing will assist the Department in understanding the evidence.” The Department has determined that the requests received do not contain credible conflicting technical information regarding licensing criteria to support holding a public hearing.
The Department will hold a public meeting in accordance with 06-096 C.M.R. ch. 2, §8 in the greater Bangor area to provide an opportunity to offer comments on the amendment application in a public forum. Notice of the meeting will be published in the Bangor Daily News and will be sent to all interested persons 10 days prior to the meeting, in addition to being posted on this webpage. - January 9, 2018 - Comments received to date
- January 9, 2018 - Requests for public hearing on application
- December 14, 2017 – Application Supplemental Information on Solid Waste Hierarchy (PDF)
- November 27, 2017 – Amendment Application to License #S-020700-WD-BC-A Continued Acceptance of In-State Municipal Solid Waste (PDF)
Application for Landfill Expansion
The application is for expansion of the Juniper Ridge Landfill located in Old Town, Maine to provide an additional 9.35 million cubic yards of disposal capacity to meet the State of Maine’s long term solid waste disposal needs. The Juniper Ridge Landfill is owned by the State of Maine and operated by NEWSME Landfill Operations, LLC.
The application was accepted as complete for processing on August 7, 2015
The application consists of 5 volumes:
Note: these PDF files are very large and may take a long time to download. If you have any problems, please contact Kathy Tarbuck to make arrangements for acquiring the files.
The Department will plan to update this web page every Thursday afternoon with new general correspondence, or additional submittals from the applicant, that is pertinent to the pending NRPA and Solid Waste applications. Time-sensitive documents will be posted as soon as they become finalized. You are encouraged to check back frequently for new information as it becomes available. If you have any difficulty accessing a document, please contact Kathy Tarbuck.
June 1, 2017 - Signed license (approval with conditions) (PDF)
May 22, 2017 - Board of Environmental Protection June 1, 2017 meeting announcement, agenda and documents
Comments received on the Draft License:
- BGS/NEWSME Comments (PDF)
- Intervenor City of Old Town Comments (PDF)
- Intervenor Edward Spencer Comments (PDF)
- Intervenor Dana Snowman Comments (PDF)
- Public Comments (PDF)
Draft License – April 14, 2017 – Solid Waste and Natural Resources Protection Act Draft License
Draft license comments due Monday, May 8, 2017 by 5:00 pm. Comments may be emailed to Kathy.tarbuck@maine.gov or mailed to Kathy Tarbuck, Department of Environmental Protection, 17 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0017.
Board of Environmental Protection December 15, 2016 Board meeting agenda and documents (JRL expansion application deliberative session)
November 23, 2016 - Post-Hearing Briefs received
November 9, 2016 - Hearing Transcripts
- October 18 (PDF), October 18 condensed (PDF) (4 sheets per page)
- October 19 (PDF), October 19 condensed (PDF) (4 sheets per page)
October 7, 2016 – Hearing Schedule (PDF)
October 7, 2016 – Second Notice of Public Hearing (PDF) (published by the Bangor Daily News 10/8/16 and sent to abutting property owners and interested persons)
September 28, 2016 – Board of Environmental Protection Sixth Procedural Order, Hearing Procedures and Schedule (PDF)
September 16, 2016 – City of Old Town submittal re: Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions, Allocation of Costs for Implementation of Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions, and MDOT information (PDF)
September 12, 2016 – Public Hearing Notice of JRL Expansion Application (PDF)
- Public Notice Hearing Letter to Interested Persons (PDF)
- Public Notice Hearing Letter to Abutters (PDF)
September 9, 2016 – BGS-NEWSME Pre-filed Rebuttal Testimony (PDF)
September 9, 2016 – Mr. Spencer’s Pre-filed Rebuttal Testimony (PDF)
August 25, 2016 - Board of Environmental Protection Fifth Procedural Order, Rulings on the Motion to Strike Testimony (PDF)
- Dr. Coghlan’s testimony with redactions noted (PDF)
- Mr. Spencer’s testimony with redactions noted (PDF)
August 18, 2016 – Edward Spencer response to Motion to Strike of BGS/NEWSME (PDF)
August 18, 2016 – BGS/NEWSME response to Motion to Strike of Edward Spencer (PDF)
August 16, 2016 – City of Old Town response to Motion to Strike of Edward Spencer (PDF)
August 12, 2016 – Motion to Strike and Incorporated Memorandum of Law submitted by BGS and NEWSME (PDF)
August 12, 2016 – Motion to Strike submitted by Edward Spencer (PDF)
August 8, 2016 – NEWSME response to DEP Staff’s July 15, 2016 Oversized Bulky Waste additional information request (PDF)
July 29, 2016 - Pre-Filed Direct Testimony Submitted by:
July 15, 2016 – DEP Staff email requesting additional Oversized Bulky Waste information (PDF)
July 11, 2016 - BGS and NEWSME Response to DEP Staff’s July 1, 2016 Oversized Bulky Waste information request. Also includes Leachate Disposal Agreement (PDF)
July 7, 2016 - Memorandum on the JRL June 23, 2016 site visit (PDF)
July 1, 2016 – Staff letter addressing BGS and NEWSME’s May 2016 application review response document (PDF)
- Attachment to staff letter: Stephen E. Farrar, P.E. memorandum June 16, 2016 (PDF)
- Attachment to staff letter: Richard S. Behr, C.G., memorandum June 21, 2016 (PDF)
June 20, 2016 – Board of Environmental Protection June 23, 2016 meeting agenda and documents (PDF)
May 27, 2016 - Board of Environmental Protection Third Procedural Order, Documentation of Pre-hearing Conference held May 18, 2016 (PDF)
- City of Old Town Intervenor Issues List (PDF)
- City of Old Town/CES comments on the expansion application (PDF)
- Ed Spencer Intervenor Issue List email (PDF)
- Ed Spencer Intervenor Issues List (PDF)
Response to staff and Attorney General’s Office March 30, 2016 comments on the Draft Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions document:
- May 13, 2016 - City of Old Town response (PDF)
- April 4, 2016 - BGS and NEWSME response (PDF)
April 6, 2016 - Staff letter addressing BGS and NEWSME's March 2016 application review response document (PDF)
- Attachment to staff letter: Stephen E. Farrar memorandum April 1, 2016 (PDF)
- Attachment to staff letter: Richard S. Behr, C.G. memorandum April 1, 2016 (PDF)
March 30, 2016 - Staff and Attorney General’s Office comments and questions on the draft Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions (PDF)
March 30, 2016 - Draft Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions document (PDF)
March 7, 2016 - BGS and NEWSME’s response to DEP staff review comments on the application (PDF)
February 25, 2016 - Board of Environmental Protection Second Procedural Order, Documentation of Pre-hearing Conference held February 10, 2016 (PDF)
February 9, 2016 - NRPA related comments received as of February 5, 2016 (PDF)
January 28, 2016 - Letter to Abutters Regarding Participation in the Licensing Proceedings (PDF)
January 27, 2016 - Correction to staff review comment letter (PDF)
January 22, 2016 - Staff review comment letter on the application (PDF)
- Attachment to staff review comment letter: R. Behr memo January 15, 2016 (PDF)
- Attachment to staff review comment letter: S. Farrar et al memo January 20, 2016 (PDF)
- Attachment to staff review comment letter: FAME email January 6, 2016 (PDF)
- Attachment to staff review comment letter: DOT memo December 28, 2015 (PDF)
January 21, 2016 - Board of Environmental Protection First Procedural Order, Designation of Intervenors (PDF)
January 15, 2016 - January 21 Board of Environmental Protection Agenda and associated documents re: Petitions to Intervene
January 11, 2016 - Letter to Parties Regarding January 21 Board of Environmental Protection Agenda (PDF)
January 7, 2016 - Petition of SSR, LLC to be an intervenor (PDF)
January 5, 2016 - Opposition of BGS and NEWSME to Petition to Intervene of Antonio Blasi and Comment on Other Intervenor Petitions (PDF)
December 17, 2015 - Petition of Jesse Pekkala to be an intervenor (PDF)
December 17, 2015 - Petition of Antonio Blasi to be an intervenor (PDF)
December 17, 2015 - Petition of Dana Snowman to be an intervenor (PDF)
December 17, 2015 - Petition of Ed Spencer to be an intervenor (PDF)
November 12, 2015 - Staff review comments on select portions of the application (PDF)
November 19, 2015 - Letter to abutting property owners regarding intervention (PDF)
November 19, 2015 - Notice of opportunity to intervene (PDF)
October 23, 2015 - Permit By Rule Approval for Activity In/On/Over a Significant Vernal Pool (PDF)
September 3, 2015 - Commissioner's recommendation that the Board of Environmental Protection assume licensing jurisdiction over the applications (PDF)
September 3, 2015 - September 17, 2015 Board of Environmental Protection Agenda (PDF)
September 3, 2015 - Notice to Interested Persons of Commissioner’s recommendation that the Board of Environmental Protection assume licensing jurisdiction over the applications (PDF)
August 28, 2015 - All the requests for a hearing on the NRPA and Solid Waste Applications submitted to the Department by August 27, 2015 (PDF)
August 21, 2015 - Public comments and requests for a hearing on the NRPA and Solid Waste applications as of 12:00 p.m., August 20, 2015 (PDF)
Partial Approval of Public Benefit Determination
July 10, 2015 - Clarification on Public Benefit Determination status (PDF)
September 14, 2012 - Commissioner’s Letter to Juniper Ridge Landfill Operator On Need To Modify Public Benefit Determination (PDF)
January 31, 2012 - Department Order, Partial Approval of Public Benefit Determination Application for Juniper Ridge Landfill Expansion (PDF)
January 31, 2012 - Press Release: Maine DEP Releases Determination On Public Benefit To Proposed Juniper Ridge Landfill Expansion
October 18, 2011 - Press Release: Juniper Ridge Landfill expansion public benefit determination subject of public meeting
September 27, 2011 - Notice of Acceptance of Public Benefit Determination Application for Proposed Juniper Ridge Landfill (PDF)
September 23, 2011 - Acceptance of Juniper Ridge Landfill Public Benefit Determination Application (PDF)
September 15, 2011 - Application for Public Benefit Determination for the Proposed expansion of the Juniper Ridge Landfill in Old Town (PDF)
Additional Information
April 9, 2004 - License Amendment Approval Order (PDF)