Environmental groups tell Albany council Coffin Butte expansion raises methane, leachate and monitoring concerns

Representatives from Beyond Toxics and Valley Neighbors for Environmental Quality and Safety presented to the council on Oct. 20 about the Coffin Butte landfill expansion application pending before Benton County, saying the proposal raises concerns about methane leaks, monitoring exemptions and leachate that could affect Albany residents.

Mason Levitt, a research analyst at Beyond Toxics, said satellite work by Carbon Mapper showed repeated plumes of methane at Coffin Butte; Carbon Mapper flew the site 12 times over two years and found at least one large methane leak in each overflight, Levitt said. He described methane as a potent greenhouse gas and noted landfill gas includes carbon dioxide and trace pollutants that often cause odor complaints in nearby neighborhoods.

Levitt told the council that Oregon surface emissions monitoring rules require facility monitoring at 25-foot intervals, but that…