HUMANITIES NAACP JOINS BROOKHAVEN CHAPTER AGAINST WASTE TRANSFER STATION

NAACP Brookhaven Chapter President

Dr. Georgette Grier-Key, joined by NAACP NYS Conference President Dr. Hazel Dukes, today called on the State Legislature to reject the latest attempts by Winters Bros. and its Republican allies in Brookhaven to build the largest waste transfer station in New York State history in a potential Environmental Justice Area without seeking local zoning approval.

Republican Assemblyman Joe DeStefano and Republican Senator Dean Murray have introduced legislation (A05365 and S05215) to trample on a conservation easement in Brookhaven to make it easier for Winters Bros. to build and operate its massive and unnecessary waste transfer facility – which the company has said it intends to build without seeking local zoning approvals by securing a federal waiver of local rules.

“Republicans don’t go rogue in Brookhaven – not if they expect party support for their elections. So when Brookhaven Republicans in Albany line up to support Winters. Bros plans, we know it’s because their leader –Supervisor Ed Romaine – has given his tacit if not direct approval,” Dr. GrierKey said “This is just another attempt by Supervisor Romaine and his cronies on the Town Board trying to avoid taking any responsibility for quietly allowing Winters Bros. to build this massive facility. We killed this bill in Albany once and we will kill it again, and we will hold Supervisor Romaine to account for sending his allies in Albany to do Winters’ bidding once again.”

In the 2021 legislative session, Assemblyman DeStefano introduced similar legislation to trample on conservation easements to support Winters Bros. plans but withdrew the legislation after pressure from the NAACP made clear the bill would never win approval in Albany.

“It’s time for Winters Bros. to stop playing games and trying to make an end run around the community to build its massive dump in a potential

(STB) because it would ship the waste off Long Island by rail. The STB has the power to waive local zoning laws if it decides a project is “rail related,” completely cutting out the Town Zoning Board. Currently the property is not zoned for a waste transfer facility.

In addition, Winters Bros. also falsely claims that Long Island faces a waste simply worked with the Long Island Railroad and won the approvals they needed.

Second, the two new facilities when fully built will be able to handle nearly 1.3 million tons of construction and demolition waste every year – almost double the amount of similar waste now going into the landfill. The landfill will continue to take ash waste from the burning of household garbage through 2026 and neither the newly permitted facilities nor Winters Bros. is seeking to accept ash waste.

Yet Winters Bros. continues to claim its proposed facility – which would accept 6,000 tons a day from more than 350 trucks every day six days a week for a total capacity of more than 1.8 million tons a year – is needed to solve a socalled “crisis” on Long Island. In fact, Winters Bros. plans to consolidate four existing facilities it operates into the proposed facility – and bring about 1,000 tons they currently accept. That leaves 5,000 tons a day that Winters Bros. would need to accept to make its plans work.

Environmental Justice Area,” Dr. Dukes said. “The NAACP has blocked Winters Bros. in Albany and we will block them in Washington too. There is no getting around the community, and it’s time that Winters Bros. – and Supervisor Romaine and his allies – accept that reality.”

Winters Bros. has peddled a false narrative for years in a weak effort to convince stakeholders that it must seek a federal waiver of local zoning from the federal Surface Transportation Board crisis with the closure of the Brookhaven Town landfill in late 2024 so its facility should win easy approval. The facts make clear this narrative is also completely false.

First, two new waste transfer facilities in Brentwood and Medford have been fully permitted by the state Department of Environmental Conservation – the Medford facility was approved just this month – that will export waste by rail. Neither facility needed nor sought STB approval to access the rail lines. They

“We know Winters Bros. plans to make Brookhaven the home of NYC garbage – there is nowhere else to get the trash to fill its capacity and make the project work financially,” Dr. Grier-Key said.

“That is the dirty secret they refuse to admit – but don’t deny – and it’s exactly why they want to avoid this conversation in front of the Town Zoning Board Winters Bros. needs to stop the lies and face the community if it wants to build anything here. It’s also time for Supervisor Romaine to call out Winters Bros. and stand with the community – loudly and proudly in public – and end the backroom dealing with this disingenuous company.”

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