RALEIGH – The N. C. Division of Waste Management issued a municipal solid waste landfill permit Friday for the Goldleaf facility in Greene County. The facility is located on N.C. State Road 91, between Snow Hill and Walstonburg.
Republic Services of North Carolina, LLC, applied for the permit in order to construct and operate a municipal solid waste landfill. The facility’s service area includes all of North Carolina, but its permit does not allow it to accept trash from other states. In addition to Greene County, the majority of the waste is expected to originate in nearby Edgecombe, Wilson, Pitt and Lenoir counties.
Municipal solid waste landfills can accept residential, commercial and industrial solid waste, but exclude hazardous waste and other wastes specifically banned by state law. The Goldleaf plan is integrated in that the current permit only allows a MSWLF unit, but other solid waste management activities, such as yard waste composting, recycling or a construction and demolition unit could occur in the future, if the appropriate permits amendments are issued.
The DWM held a public hearing on the proposed permit October 5 at the County Courthouse in Snow Hill. The division also accepted written comments from August 30 through October 13, 2000. Numerous comments were reviewed and considered as part of the permit review process.
By law, the permit process requires the division to review Republic Services’ plans for the facility. Plans for engineering, operations, closure and post-closure, construction quality assurance and water quality monitoring were also reviewed. "This site has received a great deal of attention by the citizens of Greene County," said Dexter Matthews, Chief of DWM’s Solid Waste Section. "We have reviewed and considered all comments received as part of the public comment period on the draft permit. The public can be assured this municipal solid waste landfill permit meets or exceeds all state and federal regulations."
The division has no authority over zoning, land use, or where a company decides to locate a facility. Local governments have authority for regulating land use.
A fact sheet and the public comments received for this facility can be reviewed at the DWM Web site,