Fears that flocks of scavenging birds could disrupt flight patterns at Denver International Airport and Front Range Airport should be enough to persuade officials to kill a proposed landfill, dump opponents say.
Letters from the Federal Aviation Administration, Colorado Department of Transportation and DIA all indicate that if the 165-acre dump planned near Bennett is filled with household waste, it will attract birds that could fly into the engines of aircraft at both airports.
“This is just an even more compelling reason why this landfill does not belong here,” said Leslie Gerbracht, head of Adams Homeowners for Open Accountable Government. The group is composed of about 80 property owners who oppose the landfill.
But Alpine Waste & Recycling, the landfill’s operator, said the dump will meet requirements to cut the number of birds feeding there, spokesman Steve Caulk said.
The Adams County Planning Commission is expected to issue a recommendation on the landfill today.
The dump site, near Bennett on Schumaker Road close to East 88th Avenue, was originally zoned to receive coal ash. But in 2005, Adams County planners approved Alpine’s request to use the proposed dump for household waste.
No public hearings were held before the dump’s permitted use was changed, and that sparked a lawsuit from nearby residents. In the meantime, the county and Alpine agreed to hold public hearings on the matter.
In May, the FAA told the Adams County Planning Department that municipal landfills are known to attract large numbers of wildlife — especially birds — and it was concerned about the dump taking municipal waste.
DIA and CDOT expressed similar worries.
Caulk pointed out that a much larger landfill — nearly eight times the size of the Alpine facility — operates only 10,000 feet from DIA, on Tower Road. The Alpine landfill would be more than 6 miles from DIA and 3.8 miles from Front Range.
Alpine’s wildlife-mitigation plan — which includes applying daily cover material to discourage rodents and birds — also has its believers.
Front Range Airport has signed off on the plan. A U.S. Department of Agriculture airport wildlife biologist also said in a June 8 letter that if Alpine follows its wildlife plan, few bird problems will arise.
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
