The company operating Oregon’s only hazardous waste landfill says it needs room to grow as it anticipates an influx of waste in the years to come. Military cleanups, federal Superfund sites, firefighter training facilities — all are among reasons cited by Chemical Waste Management, or CWM, to expand its hazardous waste operation outside the Columbia River town of Arlington. “This is all about planning for the future and protecting the environment,” said CWM spokesperson Jackie Lang, “making sure that dangerous materials and potentially dangerous materials are managed safely in the years ahead.”
The current hazardous waste landfill sits on a nearly 1,300-acre plot adjacent to Oregon’s largest solid waste landfill run by the same parent company, Waste Management. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency defines hazardous waste as any solid waste that could harm human health or the environment.
CWM is currently permitted to use 320 acres for hazardous waste disposal. The company wants to add 200 acres of disposal space and will apply to modify its permit with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.
DEQ cleanup, hazardous waste permitting and emergency response manager David Anderson said the existing hazardous waste landfill “is approximately half full.” With new waste streams on the horizon — including the Portland Harbor Superfund cleanup — more space will soon become critical.