That is a lot of garbage
We took this picture from the Washington Ave overpass at Rt 85. It's been cropped a bit.
We noticed this a little while back, but only snapped the picture yesterday: you can see the Rapp Road landfill all the way down Washington Ave where it crosses over Rt 85.
According to the Gmaps Pedometer, that's 3.3 miles as the crow (or, in the case probably, seagull) flies. That is a big hill of trash.
By the way: it's projected that the landfill will be full by the end of this year. So, where's all the trash going to go? Good question. The City of Albany is still trying to work things out with the DEC for an expansion of the facility.
And it's not just Albany that would be looking for a place to dump its trash -- more than 200,000 people in the Capital Region send their garbage to this facility.
Earlier on AOA:
+ How does pay-as-you-throw smell?
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Comments
Hey cool, thanks for capturing a picture!
... said Dan on Feb 17, 2009 at 12:40 PM | link
I get to brag now that I use cloth diapers on my son and rarely purchase anything new. Because it gives me a sense of moral superiority against those insufferable yuppies at BabiesRus. Er, I mean, because I'm really poor. Er, I mean, because I care for the Earth. Yes. Final answer.
... said Pantaloons on Feb 17, 2009 at 1:40 PM | link
You mean that "landscape" is really all garbage?
Pantaloons, do you have a poop bucket? What do you do with the excrement, do you wash that stuff by itself in its own load?
... said Katherine on Feb 17, 2009 at 2:14 PM | link
@Katherine
The dirty diapers get their own hamper and own laundry load. But there's a special thin flushable diaper liner I use that makes the process so much more tolerable. There are also flushable diapers available that someone gave me to try, although, the concept is better in theory than in practice as they are wicked thick and can easily clog your pipes.
2% of all landfill garbage is baby diapers. Hey, the more ya know, right?
... said Pantaloons on Feb 17, 2009 at 3:19 PM | link
I used to rehab houses and i would dump all my old house stuff up in there, if you have ever been up on top of that pile of trash and scene the dudes with the huge steel wheeled bulldozers....its like being in a mad max movie, i suggest everyone at least walk up there to check it out
... said JVG on Feb 17, 2009 at 3:24 PM | link
Nothing like the stench of Albany's landfill to greet you after a long trip as you pass through the tolls.
Re: cloth diapers. It's a sign of the times! Not only is it kinder to the environment, but it's less expensive than buying a box of Pampers each week.
Reduce, reuse, cloth diaper!
http://www.cafepress.com/ThymeLee/6384489
... said abby on Feb 17, 2009 at 4:32 PM | link
Those "flushable" liners go somewhere, too, you know. They go to the sewage treatment plant, where they are pulled out of the process with the other stuff that shouldn't go down pipes and sent to the landfill. Or, if they decompose enough, they go through the sewage treatment process, settle out as solids, are dewatered into sludge, and then the sludge is sent to the landfill. It's all going there one way or another.
... said CJ on Feb 17, 2009 at 7:11 PM | link
@CJ
The flushable diaper liners are on par with toilet paper. So I hear. I wouldn't know really. I don't want to contribute to the landfill sludge which is why I don't wipe.
It's not easy being green.
... said Pantaloons on Feb 17, 2009 at 8:56 PM | link
How about some of you baby making, "eco-friendly", post Al "green" Gore yuppies stop having kids? That would really help our landfill.
... said MattW on Feb 17, 2009 at 8:59 PM | link
@MattW
You're so right. Everyone should just stop having babies. That will solve the garbage problem way better than simply modifying our wasteful behavior. Thumbs up to your plan!
*downs bottle of whiskey*
... said Pantaloons on Feb 17, 2009 at 10:39 PM | link
Yup, I'm with MattW.
... said -S on Feb 18, 2009 at 10:52 AM | link
Vermiculture kids. It's the way to go. I am actually quite excited about the nutrient rich poop that will make my garden pretty. Besides, it's cleaner, less stinky and more compact than other means of composting.
http://earth911.com/blog/2007/04/02/composting-with-worms/
... said Summer on Feb 18, 2009 at 12:06 PM | link
Havent you guys ever heard of milorganite.com? That said, i agree with MattW, less babies means less stress at home and on the environment. There is probably an algorithm: number of fewer babies means number of fewer pampers, evil republicans, wallstreet greedies, and so on till fewer WalMarts... more trees, snail darters and golden eagles... the globe will begin to cool off and the Age of Aquarius will dawn.
... said hrgreen on Feb 18, 2009 at 12:36 PM | link
You guys can NOT be serious. I refuse to believe it. You're joking. You have to be. You mean to tell me you'd rather deny people the opportunity to have a family instead of having the moderate inconvenience of recycling? Man, be careful. If you folks get any more wonderful you might turn into a giant rainbow, only to slowly fade from the sky and into the cherished memory of our hearts.
... said Pantaloons on Feb 18, 2009 at 12:36 PM | link
If baby diapers account for 2% of all garbage then it seems to me pizza boxes must be at least 3%. No more pizza, everyone, unless you wrap it in a reusable cloth to bring home...
... said Elizabeth on Feb 18, 2009 at 4:18 PM | link
Nope, definitely serious. I'm no hippie, far from it, but fairly pragmatic and realistic; if there is *certainly* something our planet doesn't need more of, it's us. The chance that my kid and grandkids, or your kid and grandkids, will destroy this rock even more is to me far greater than my gene pool or yours will produce somebody able to remotely address the environmental meltdown we are heading to.
We are a species like any other, a more damaging one though, and the urge to reproduce is wired extremely deeply. Disconnect. As far as I'm concerned, it's not because I can have 3 kids that I should, it's not responsible to me, rather selfish with respect to the legion of kids you can adopt/foster, and sadly, way less planet-friendly than skipping.
I said it :) And just made tons of lady friends.
... said -S on Feb 18, 2009 at 5:00 PM | link
I say we go after Starbucks and every other coffee shop for providing us with nice recycled paper cups, but sticking us with plastic tops that the city won't recycle because they're not number 1 or 2 plastic. I say invest in a travel mug and use that every day instead of using the cups and blasted tops provided.
... said Summer on Feb 18, 2009 at 5:06 PM | link
Travel mug? Just use a regular mug. Why do you need to drink coffee on the go? Still driving a car?
... said luke on Feb 18, 2009 at 7:35 PM | link
It's very hard for these liberal green-co/op types to argue that this concept would not have a statistically favorable outcome on the global waste production. Award winning economists have written on the effects that the legalization of abortion in the 80's had on a measurable decrease of crime in mid-nineties. A one child limit may have much more of a positive outcome than people shrug their nose at. Maybe then, only maybe, will our right to bear arms cease to be threatened or infringed upon. If I want to keep a unloaded shotgun under my bed, I will. I will.
God Bless.
... said MattW on Feb 18, 2009 at 8:23 PM | link
Well, I suggest travel mug because I know downtown's coffee houses are crammed with people trying to obtain their morning jolt before heading to the office. The handy lid tends to keep your coffee from sloshing onto your trousers.
... said Summer on Feb 19, 2009 at 12:47 AM | link
Looks like -S and MattW have it all figured out. To recap their arguments: Only irresponsible people should have biological kids, because us responsible people know that having kids hurts the environment. And if you're selfish enough to want to raise a child, you should give up many years and tens of thousands of dollars working with adoption agencies in order to adopt their kids . And while you're busy doing that, the irresponsible people can be free to do more irresponsible things, like produce more biological children that they can't support. And hey, while we're at it, we should consider a one-child policy like China, because only then will we be free ...to bare arms. And these suggestions are the most practical way of reducing our waste. Not recycling, buying used or raising the next generation to respect the planet. Because that's just hippy bullshit.
Clearly, I am out of my league here. Perhaps you wizards can show me the most efficient way get rid of the snow on my driveway. I was thinking we could use a shovel, but, maybe instead we could get a box of matches and light them one by one and hold them next to the ground and melt it all away. What could possibly go wrong?
... said Pantaloons on Feb 19, 2009 at 11:38 AM | link
Oh, -S. Did you just say to disconnect from the baby-making urge? I cannot believe these words came from your mind.
... said B on Feb 19, 2009 at 12:05 PM | link
@Pant: see, that wasn't so difficult to get.
@B: wait, I thought you didn't want any for the same reasons :)
... said -S on Feb 19, 2009 at 12:24 PM | link
There's no way I want any, but I'm certainly not disconnecting from the biological imperative to make them.
... said B on Feb 19, 2009 at 2:03 PM | link