It’s time to close Seneca Meadows

In late September, world leaders, corporate executives, and climate activists gathered in New York City for Climate Week. They discussed bold strategies to combat climate change. These conversations are vital—climate change is the most pressing threat to humankind. 

But for those of us living upstate, the impacts of climate change are more than just a panel topic. They’re in our backyard, creeping into our air, water, and homes. Here in the Finger Lakes region, we don’t need to look far to see the harm: the Seneca Meadows landfill stands as a daily reminder that the fight against climate change is far from over.

While folks downstate are busy with high-profile events, parties, and photo ops, upstate residents are forced to confront the very real environmental and health crises that threaten our communities. The Seneca Meadows landfill, New York’s largest, casts a shadow that stretches far beyond its 400-acre footprint. The dump, which receives 6,000 tons of garbage each day, is a significant source of methane emissions—a greenhouse gas that is nearly 80 times as potent as carbon dioxide. These emissions are a significant driver of climate change and rising temperatures. 

For the opposing viewpoint see: Seneca Meadows is helping New York reach its environmental goals

But the landfill isn’t just contributing to climate change on a global scale—it’s devastating our local environment. Toxic chemicals like PFAS, often called “forever chemicals” because they persist in the environment, are found in the landfill’s leachate—liquid that forms when rainwater filters through the waste. This contaminated leachate flows into our waterways, threatening water quality throughout New York and beyond. Seneca Meadows is responsible for transporting millions of gallons of PFAS-laden wastewater to towns and cities that don’t have the capacity to remove these toxins. The result? Our waterways and drinking water are contaminated, and entire communities are at risk.

Neighboring residents also experience degraded air quality. The stench from the landfill is unbearable—a near-constant reminder of the pollutants escaping into the atmosphere. State data tracking has shown that lung cancer rates in the areas surrounding the landfill are abnormally high, prompting the state Department of Health to classify parts of Seneca County as a “cancer cluster.” For families living here, these aren’t just statistics. They are stories of loss, fear, and suffering.

Seneca Meadows, owned by the Texas-based company Waste Connections, is seeking to extend its operations until 2040, despite its scheduled closure in 2025. This would mean an additional 47 acres filled with garbage, producing more emissions, more toxic runoff, and more devastation for our community. Expanding this toxic dump—pushing it closer to schools, homes, and businesses—is reckless and shortsighted. 

This flies in the face of New York’s bold commitment to addressing climate change. Under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, our state has pledged to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The state’s Solid Waste Management Plan calls for landfills to be used as a last resort. Allowing Seneca Meadows to expand would directly contradict these goals, perpetuating a “business as usual” approach to waste management at a time when we need urgent, transformative action.

Every day, our neighbors are breathing in polluted air, drinking compromised water, and living in fear of how the landfill is harming their bodies and their land. While bigwigs in New York City talk about saving the planet, we’re fighting for our right to a clean, safe home.

We urge state leaders to recognize the urgency of this issue. The Seneca Meadows landfill is an environmental disaster that contributes to the very climate crisis they’re committed to tackling.

The Finger Lakes are a treasure, defined by natural beauty, beautiful farms and wineries, and serene lakes. But Seneca Meadows is undoing that legacy and turning our home into the state’s dumping ground. One third of the trash in Seneca Meadows comes from New York City. Climate Week goers—your name tags or lunch wrappers might end up here, where Upstate New Yorkers are the ones left to deal with the consequences.

It’s time to close Seneca Meadows for good, to protect our water, our air, and our health. Only then can we begin to heal the scars this landfill has inflicted on our communities and move toward a sustainable, climate-resilient future.

Yvonne Taylor is vice president and cofounder of Seneca Lake Guardian, a Finger Lakes environmental group.

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