By Teri West | The Jersey Journal

Making a rare public comment on the controversial Keegan Landfill, Gov. Phil Murphy said putting a cap on the 110-acre landfill in Kearny is “complicated” but that he’s committed to finding a solution “that works for everybody.”

The governor has remained mostly quiet on the landfill that’s owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, but promised residents a “good resolution” when asked about it on News 12’s “Ask Governor Murphy.’’

Harrison resident John Pinho submitted the question to the program, asking why Murphy has never commented on the landfill. Murphy said he does not comment on issues that are being litigated.

A Hudson County judge ruled Monday that the landfill must permanently close, writing that the landfill and the hydrogen sulfide gas it emits pose a “clear and immediate danger.”

“Are we committed full throttle, wholeheartedly whether it’s through the Sports and Exposition Authority the Department of Environmental Protection to getting a good resolution that we work through with the community in Kearny on this landfill? Absolutely. Period. Full stop,” Murphy said. “Apparently it is not just as easy as putting a cap on this thing. This is complicated.”

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But a cap on the landfill is exactly what Mayor Al Santos says Kearny needs.

Even if waste is no longer deposited at the landfill, the existing waste will continue to emit hydrogen sulfide as it decomposes, he said, adding that a cap would protect residents from those emissions.

“If he wants to do something that works in a local community than he should speak to the local community and he hasn’t done that,” Santos said in response to the governor’s comments. “He knows full well that a liner would work. It’s worked at other closed landfills.”

Santos said that Murphy called capping the landfill “complicated” because the NJSEA will miss out on millions of dollars in annual revenue if the facility is permanently closed.

The state, however, should look for alternative ways to fund the agency, rather than a landfill that puts his constituents at risk, the mayor said.

The NJSEA has not responded to multiple requests for comment this week.

“We’ve been saying all along that the Sports Authority’s doing this for money,” Santos said. “They’re not doing this out of the good of their hearts to provide for the construction debris in this area. They’ve denied it, they’ve not cooperated, they’ve set up obstacles because they want to keep that money…If this agency is worth keeping then you have to fund it not at the public health costs of Kearny residents.”

Residents have complained about the intense rotten egg odors coming from the landfill for more than a year and raised concerns of the potential negative health effects that breathing in the hydrogen sulfide gas can have.

Exposure to varying levels of the colorless gas can cause irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat, as well as nausea, headache, dizziness, and confusion.

Monday’s decision to keep the landfill permanently closed was the latest news to come out of a legal battle that began in April when Kearny filed a lawsuit against the NJSEA and Murphy’s Department of Environmental Protection.

The DEP has since been dismissed from the case, but Hudson County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Jablonski decided that the landfill is a danger to the community and ordered its closure.

On Tuesday, the court set an April 2020 trial date for remaining claims in the case, including a demand for finances associated with the landfill, Santos said.

Very little of Hudson County’s waste was previously going to Keegan Landfill, said Norman Guerra, the CEO of the Hudson County Improvement Authority, which manages the county’s public solid waste.

The HCIA recently went out to bid for a new designated disposal facility to replace Keegan Landfill and is in the process of accepting a bid from Waste Management, which has two transfer facilities in Elizabeth and one in Fairview.

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