Property Values and Landfills - It ain't pretty

Do you think Mayor Bloomberg of New York City gives a damn about where his vast amount of trash goes when it leaves on a train or barge each day? The South is rapidly becoming the dumping ground for trash from New York and other large urban areas. Reducing their trash raises their property values and lowers ours.

Growing up in Maryville, Tennessee frequently I would hear my peers comparing notes on where their daddies worked. The most common answer was the "plant." The plant was the Aluminum smelter and rolling mill in Alcoa, Tennessee. It was a good thing to work at the "plant." It provided a good income, great health care, and a substantial retirement. Kids had a certain amount of pride about their daddies working at the plant.

What will generations of children in rural south Alabama say when they compare notes with their peers? My daddy works at the largest "dump" in the United States. Somehow I don't think this is the dream that south Alabamians want for their children. I also don't think their children will want to inherit property that will have less relative value than when their parents owned it before the landfill

This comes from Propex:

Proximity to landfills and hazardous waste sites can severely affect property values. Any property close to an active landfill will probably be devalued as a matter of course. Depending on how close the property lies to the site, whether the site is still active, and (if not active) if the waste has been properly encapsulated or removed, the value of a tract of land or home could be affected in many different ways. For example, if an active landfill is declared "closed" and proper measures are taken to ensure that there is no risk of contamination from the waste therein, the value of a nearby property may rise from the low value it had from being located near an active waste site. Devalued property may further regain some of its previous value if the former waste site is improved or developed commercially. However, if the waste site is not properly closed and encapsulated, or if waste leaks into the surrounding properties while or after it is active, property values may be irreversibly lowered.

Would the Conecuh County Commission be willing to make a guarantee to county residents to make up the difference between land values before the landfill and AFTER the landfill, and give that guarantee in writing to each property owner? Ask them...