News

Time remains to fight Highway 6 landfill

In April 2012, students of Prairie View A&M University were doing everything possible to raise awareness and stop the Georgia based company, Green Group Holdings/Pintail LLC, from constructing a landfill in Waller County.
 Plans for the Pintail landfill are still in progress. Green Group Holdings/Pintail LLC has been investing much time, money, and effort in an attempt to gain the support from locals and neighboring communities.
The company has also been offering “financial incentives” to Waller County, according to Kelvin Kirby, Deputy Director at Prairie View’s Center for Radiation Engineering Sciences that will eventually go away, but leave citizens with a polluted environment and trash forever.
The landfill will be four miles from the university, stretching more than 700 acres, affecting Waller, Hempstead, and Prairie View.
The Highway 6 landfill will affect the groundwater and the health of local citizens by producing hazardous toxins and pollution.
The economic development of the cities will be at risk as well.
Many people object to the landfill because of the major impact it will have on the university. The living conditions will be affected because of the odor, contamination of water, chemicals that pollute the air causing the immune system to lower its function and become at risk for infections, and the recruitment of prospective students will also be at risk.
Although students were unsuccessful with acquiring 25,000 signatures by April 25, 2012 to stop the proposed landfill, there is another opportunity to voice their opinion to a panel of experts Nov. 15 at the Memorial Student Center Auditorium from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
A public meeting scheduled by The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality will be held later that night at 7 p.m. at the Hempstead High School auditorium providing people with updates about the dump and taking comments.