But is it time to close the landfill, which is the subject of Question 1, or should it be kept open and retrofitted for future use?  Question 1 is a $3.5 million dollar bond measure which would be used to close down the landfill.  If voters vote no, the City will need to spend another $2.5 million dollars to expand the landfill, in addition to the $2 million already spent on gas mitigation. 

There are financial considerations ... the costs of closing the landfill will end up topping $40 million dollars, and Bath’s trash contractors would have to find somewhere else to put our trash.  There are financial considerations on the other side, however, too.  Those who live closest to the landfill suffer headaches and other illnesses from breathing in hydrogen sulfide, and the costs of treating those people, or buying them out, would be astronomical. 

In the long run, we believe that the most responsible ... and humane ... thing to do is to close the landfill and continue with the gas mitigation process.  And while we are at it, we should also ... every one of us ... reduce our waste, recycle all the things we can, and reuse what we cannot recycle.  We recommend a YES vote on Question 1.

The other important ballot issue on November 6 involves a height change ordinance that would have the effect of allowing Twin River Energy to build a coal-fired gasification plant in Wiscasset.  The Coastal Journal has run a series of articles about serious issues with the gasification plant, its location, its transportation options, its carbon capture options, and its relative lack of any protective ordinances in Wiscasset which would require the developer to deal with issues of noise, odor, water use, light pollution, water pollution, air pollution, and mercury emissions which would cripple the fishing industry in the Sheepscot River and beyond.  We strongly urge a NO vote on the height change question in Wiscasset.