Juniper Ridge Landfill

Juniper Ridge Landfill (JRL) is a landfill owned by the state of Maine and operated by Casella Waste Systems. It is located in West Old Town, Maine, in the Penobscot River watershed between Pushaw Stream and Birch Stream, which both flow into the Penobscot River north of Indian Island. JRL consists of approximately 179 acres of which 68 acres are filled

Early History In 1989, the Maine Legislature banned new commercial solid waste disposal facilities and placed responsibility for providing future disposal capacity on the State itself.  In 2003,the Legislature directed the State to acquire the Juniper Ridge Landfill in Old Town, Maine

The landfill had been originally permitted for the disposal of pulp and papermaking wastes from Georgia-Pacific's West Old Town papermill, as well as burn pile ash from the City of Old Town transfer station. Following its acquisition by the state of Maine, Juniper Ridge began accepting construction and demolition debris originating from both inside or outside the State of Maine, as well as Maine-originated waste ash from incinerators & boilers, municipal solid waste from waste-to-energy facilities, and certain special wastes.

Recent history On January 13, 2020, landfill oversight group Don't Waste ME and the Penobscot Indian Nation delivered petitions to the Department of Environmental Protection requiring the agency to initiate rulemaking to remove a loophole in the state's environmental rules that allows out of state waste to be deposited at Juniper Ridge landfill. On September 17, 2020 , the department's Board of Environmental Protection held a virtual public hearing on the petition. A decision is expected in early 2001