The Department of Environmental Protection this week reported that the total amount of waste disposed of in Pennsylvania landfills dropped for the fourth consecutive year, decreasing from 25.18 million tons in 2004 to 24.55 million tons last year.

Out-of-state waste also declined for the fourth consecutive year, decreasing by 465,520 tons to 9.65 million tons --- the first time imported waste has been below 10 million tons since 1998. Imports last year represented 39.3 percent of the waste stream to Pennsylvania landfills, down from 40.2 percent in 2004 and 47.1 percent at its peak in 2001.

The state received waste from 18 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Puerto Rico last year. Leading importers remained New Jersey, 5.7 million tons; and New York, 3.5 million tons.

In-state waste deposited in Pennsylvania landfills also declined after two consecutive years in 2003 and 2004 when the amount of municipal waste climbed because of several natural disasters that hit the Commonwealth.

The amount of waste that originated in Pennsylvania totaled 14.9 million tons last year, a decrease of 164,682 tons from the 15.1 million tons landfilled in 2004.

Pennsylvania has 49 landfills and five waste recovery facilities that accept municipal waste from residences and commercial facilities and residual waste from factories, manufacturers, farms and mining operations.

The state remains the nation’s largest waste importer.

In Virginia, which is second in the amount of out-of-state waste, landfills accepted 7.8 million tons of trash imports in 2004, the most recent year for which statistics are available. The amount represented an 18 percent increase from 2003. The majority of the trash imports came from Maryland, New York and Washington, D.C.

DEP said more detailed information on disposal reports will be posted on the Municipal Waste webpage under Municipal Waste Reporting Results.

NewsClip: Clinton County Landfill Adds 40 Years of Capacity

Trash Influx Slows, But Far From Over

5/5/2006