New Mexico Court Upholds Landfill Siting Decision

Date: October 1, 2003

Source: News Room

The New Mexico Court of Appeals has upheld the state Environment Department's decision to allow a landfill near Santa Fe. The Colonias Development Council had appealed the department's decision to issue a permit to Rhino Environmental Services, claiming the department did not consider the "social impact" of the landfill. But the court found that the department properly considered appropriate regulatory requirements and rejected other claims made by the council. The opinion notes that the state's Solid Waste Act, the governing act for landfill decisions, never actually uses the phrase "social impact," and only indicates a goal of protecting public health, safety, and welfare.

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