Tag Archives: landfills

Compost those pumpkins

Posted on November 2, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

News you can use. The day after Halloween, the city of Houston will roll out its annual effort to keep pumpkins out of landfills where they would contribute to the production of harmful greenhouse gases. The city’s Solid Waste Management … Continue reading →

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Get ready to compost

Posted on November 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I hope this expands in the near future. The city launched a composting pilot program Wednesday, opening three sites where residents can drop off compost-friendly waste that otherwise would wind up in a landfill. The hope is the program will … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill officially dead

Posted on June 27, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Hooray! Waller County leaders and residents on Monday cheered a Georgia company’s decision to abandon plans for a 250-acre acre landfill near Hempstead, saying they look forward to moving beyond an environmental fight that has dominated public debate for seven … Continue reading →

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TCEQ rejection of Hempstead landfill application upheld

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Sweet. A yearslong battle over the construction of a landfill in Hempstead has come to an end for now after a judge ruled in Austin on Friday that Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s decision to return the landfill’s application should … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill application denied again

Posted on December 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A state commission has denied a new application to build a landfill in Waller County, saying ordinances adopted by the county and the city of Hempstead now prohibit a garbage dump in the area. A highly charged debate over … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill application resubmitted

Posted on July 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. A Georgia-based company on Wednesday announced it had initiated a new application to build a controversial landfill in Waller County, bringing renewed attention to a project that a citizens group and several county commissioners have actively … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill fight still not over

Posted on July 2, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

As with all things, it ain’t over till it’s over. Green Group Holdings recently purchased the 723-acre parcel where the company had planned to build the landfill before the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality turned down the project. The move … Continue reading →

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Recycling contract impasse

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Uh, oh. The city of Houston’s curbside recycling program could be put on hold after negotiations between Waste Management and Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office reached an apparent impasse over a new contract Tuesday. Though Turner said he remains committed to … Continue reading →

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Waller County landfill plan appears to be dead

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. A Waller County commissioner on Wednesday declared victory in a years-long battle against an outside company’s proposal to develop a landfill there. “I am proud to say the landfill is dead,” Commissioner John Amsler said as the regular commissioners … Continue reading →

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Landfilling

Posted on October 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Really interesting story about a place most of us would not think to visit. The open face of the Atascocita landfill in Humble slopes downward, where trucks unload the cast-off scraps of daily life. Bulldozers spread the debris to a … Continue reading →

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TCEQ rejects application for Hempstead landfill

Posted on October 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Back to the drawing board. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality this week returned a company’s application to construct a landfill in Waller County, calling the application “deficient.” It was the latest blow to plans for the highly controversial project … Continue reading →

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More good news for Hempstead landfill opponents

Posted on September 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This could be the end of the line for the proposed landfill. Opponents of a proposed landfill in Waller County won another victory in a years-long legal fight to prevent the project. The executive director of the Texas Commission on … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill clarification

Posted on August 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I recently blogged about an update to the Hempstead landfill story, in which Green Group Holdings asked to amend its original filings regarding groundwater levels. I received an email on Monday from a Green Group representative, who sent me the … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill would indeed hurt the environment

Posted on August 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Raise your hand if this surprises you. Pintail Landfill developers backpedaled from arguments that their proposed dump site outside Hempstead would not harm the environment, agreeing for the first time this summer that their review of groundwater under the property … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill update

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: After several postponements, the Contested Case Hearing on the proposed Pintail Landfill permit has been set for November 2, 2015, in Austin. Assuming no further delays, the case will be heard by two Administrative Law Judges with … Continue reading →

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Waller County approves landfill lawsuit settlement

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this when it first came out. After two fraught years of legal battle, the lawsuit over a proposed Waller County landfill came to a quiet close Friday with a deal that ensures the civil case against the county will … Continue reading →

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Settlement talks in Waller County landfill suit

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an update on where things stand with the litigation in Waller County over the proposed landfill outside Hempstead. A jury in December ruled that Waller County Commissioners Court violated Texas’ open meetings laws in deciding to allow the project … Continue reading →

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Saving money by throwing away less

Posted on January 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good strategy all around. As a committee mulls an ambitious and controversial “one bin” project that could overhaul recycling and waste collection in Houston, the city’s traditional mode of getting rid of trash just got cheaper. A renegotiated contract with … Continue reading →

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Waller County pledges more transparency after landfill verdict

Posted on December 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

More transparency is good. Beyond that, we’ll see what happens. Incoming Waller County leaders are pledging more transparency in the wake of a jury’s verdict that sitting county commissioners illegally discussed a contentious landfill project in closed-door sessions and in … Continue reading →

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Landfill opponents win in Hempstead lawsuit

Posted on December 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. A jury on Thursday found that Waller County commissioners met illegally in closed sessions among themselves and with developers of a controversial landfill proposal over more than two years before agreeing to host the project. After a three-week … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill trial update

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s complicated. For many in the courtroom, a judge’s promise Friday that the Waller County landfill trial would conclude “before Santa Claus comes” was welcome news. Earlier in the week, they had lamented the possibility that the trial – one … Continue reading →

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Hempstead landfill fight goes to court

Posted on December 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

An update on a story I’ve been following for a few years. For the last two years, Waller County and the city of Hempstead have been pitted against each other in a high-profile legal battle over a proposed landfill in … Continue reading →

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One Bin For All RFPs

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Yesterday was a big day for the One Bin for All proposal. Thursday [was] the deadline for private companies to submit bids to the city to build and run the facility. The bid guidelines call for a 75 percent diversion … Continue reading →

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Still fighting the Waller County landfill

Posted on March 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve written before about a battle in Waller County over a proposed landfill that would be built there. While the landfill has moved closer to being approved, it’s not yet a done deal, and its opponents are still fighting against … Continue reading →

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Curbside composting

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Way to go, Austin. City officials are asking Austinites in 7,900 households in five parts of the city to separate their banana peels, egg shells, meat, chicken bones, milk cartons, leaves and any other organic material from their household trash … Continue reading →

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More on the landfills of Waller County

Posted on August 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Last July I wrote about a proposed landfill in Waller County near Hempstead and the residents who are fighting against it. The Statesman has an update on the story. In many ways, the landfill fight in this rural Texas town … Continue reading →

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Tyson Sowell: Making Plans for a Brighter Future

Posted on July 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The following is from a series of guest posts that I will be presenting over the next few weeks. In my previous article, I talked about the phasing out of single-use check-out bags being just one step the City needs … Continue reading →

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Compost recycling in San Antonio

Posted on December 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

And now that I’ve mentioned compost recycling, here’s a look at how it’s working in San Antonio. At New Earth’s composting site off Interstate 10 on the far East Side, it is easy to pick out the pile generated by … Continue reading →

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Trash into treasure

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Waste Management Inc. is looking at ways to turn trash into energy, which is the next best thing to actual treasure. “In my mind, it’s pretty simple why we’re doing it: If we don’t figure it out, somebody is, and … Continue reading →

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The landfills of Waller County

Posted on July 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There are three things I find remarkable about this story about a proposed landfill in Waller County, near Hempstead. A Georgia-based company wants to build a landfill and industrial park just outside the city on Texas 6 and Kelley, on … Continue reading →

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Compost or else

Posted on June 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Go, San Francisco! Trash collectors in San Francisco will soon be doing more than just gathering garbage: They’ll be keeping an eye out for people who toss food scraps out with their rubbish. San Francisco this week passed a mandatory … Continue reading →

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