Ruth Larson: Sept. 15 is last chance to override Sununu's veto on landfill bill

Sen. Jim Gray recently telephoned me “as one of his constituents” (but also his opponent for New Hampshire Senate District 6) to inform me about a technical error in my campaign finance report. As kind as that was, the constituent service that I want more is for him to take a new look at HB 1454 before veto override day, Sept. 15.

This bill sets a new formula for location of new landfills a sensible distance from our precious surface water. The current system uses an arbitrary and one-size-fits-all, 200-foot standard, allowing polluted groundwater to irreversibly contaminate a river or lake long before monitoring could detect it. HB 1454 instructs developers to do a simple “perk test” before they write a full application, and avoid trying to build a landfill in super-porous soil very near surface water.

I was very disappointed to see my own senator voting no on the measure, but it nevertheless passed both the House and the Senate with large bipartisan majorities. Unfortunately, Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed it, so a two-thirds  majority of both chambers is required to override the veto. Fortunately, the Sept. 15 session gives Sen. Gray a chance to study the measure more and better understand how it protects the environment and safeguards our drinking water, without in any way making it difficult for responsible developers to find one of the vast majority of sites that are safe for landfills. It is my firm belief that if Sen. Gray votes his conscience, without influence from the waste management industry that has donated to his campaign, he will vote to override the veto.

That is the kind of constituent service I would like to see. Service to the people of New Hampshire and to the future generations of this beautiful state.

Ruth Larson

Alton