Anti-Landfill Bill is One Step Closer
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Anti-Landfill Bill is One Step Closer
By Shane Gilreath
SCN Contributing Editor
[email protected]
Representative
Kelly Keisling
A closely contested vote kept legislation targeting Roberta II landfill alive in the Tennessee House last week. The bill,
House Bill 2202, which has been proposed by Representative Kelly Keisling (R- Byrdstown), who represents Scott County, cleared the Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee by a slim 5–4 margin, following lengthy testimony from state officials and local leadership, as well as Knox Horner, the controversial figure who’s long been the face of the proposed development. The measure now heads to the full committee for further consideration this week.
Keisling, who has until recently been quiet on the subject, framed the bill as a conservation effort rather than a direct attack on landfill developments, emphasizing that the county’s existing landfill has decades of remaining capacity. “This is for the people of Scott County. I’m here representing my constituents,” Keisling said, noting unified opposition from local governments across both Tennessee and Kentucky. That support strengthened last week when both the Scott County Commission and the Oneida Board of Mayor and Aldermen passed resolutions supporting the bill, a powerful message of unity that should ring loudly across the House Chamber. (see “Local Resolutions Support State Landfill Legislation.”)
At the center of the legislation is a provision to designate the Big South Fork River under Tennessee’s Scenic Rivers Act, effectively limiting where a new landfill could be located in the county in proximity to the body of water.
Huntsville Mayor Dennis Jeffers, who testified before the committee, urged lawmakers to reject the project, warning of economic consequences tied to tourism. “If our tourism goes away, most of our livelihood goes away,” he said, adding, “This landfill is not needed and not wanted.”
Jeffers assertion is not without merit with both regional tourism and commerce bodies, including the Scott County Chamber of Commerce, the Scott County IDA board, the McCreary County Tourist Commission, and others, publicly opposing the Roberta development.
Developer Knox Horner, however, countered that his company has a valid permit – the legality of which remains heavily debated – and has followed all regulatory requirements. He argued that regional waste demands make additional landfill capacity necessary. “Every county can’t have their own landfill. It just doesn’t work,” he said.
Debate among lawmakers revealed a sharp divide. Supporters pointed to local opposition and environmental concerns, while critics – one of whom, Rep. Chris Todd of Jackson disparaged Roberta opponents as conducting “mob rule” – warned the bill could violate property rights and expose the state to legal challenges.
Despite those objections, a bipartisan majority voted to advance the legislation for a full committee vote. The bill has already passed the Senate without opposition and now awaits its next test in the House.
