Requires permit applications for new or expanded landfills to include a detailed leachate management plan covering collection, storage, treatment, and transport, including documented contracts with at least two leachate disposal facilities.
requiring permit applications for new landfills to contain a detailed plan for leachate management.
HB566 would require detailed leachate management plans in permit applications for new landfills. Testimony in this sample is overwhelmingly in support, driven largely by concerns about PFAS ('forever chemical') contamination of drinking water, ongoing leachate problems at the Casella landfill in Bethlehem, and opposition to a proposed new landfill near Forest Lake in Dalton; supporters generally frame the requirement as a common-sense safeguard, with some urging that it be extended to existing and expanding landfills as well. No opposition testimony appears in this sample.
Supporters argue landfill leachate contains PFAS and other toxic contaminants that existing wastewater treatment cannot remove, posing a serious risk to drinking water wells, rivers, and lakes if not carefully managed.
Many submitters, especially from the North Country, cite direct local concern about a proposed landfill near Forest Lake in Dalton and ongoing issues at the Casella site in Bethlehem, urging protection of these specific water bodies and communities.
Some submitters argue that NHDES has not adequately enforced existing leachate management requirements, citing recent problems at the NCES landfill in Bethlehem, and that a statutory planning requirement is needed to close this gap.
Supporters describe requiring a leachate plan before permitting as basic due diligence and common sense, arguing no landfill should operate without one.
Some submitters frame the bill within broader opposition to New Hampshire accepting out-of-state waste, arguing the state should not sacrifice its environment for the profits of waste-management companies.
A number of submitters offer a broader appeal to preserving New Hampshire's natural environment and scenic beauty for future generations, without detailing specific leachate mechanics.
Several submitters support the bill but ask that it be amended so the leachate management plan requirement also applies to expansions of existing landfills, not just brand-new ones.
One submitter argues that rising precipitation and more intense rain events linked to climate change are increasing leachate volumes, making robust, enforceable management plans more urgent.
Generated by claude-sonnet-5 (claude code agent) on Jul 22, 2026. Quotes are verbatim excerpts, verified against the cited submission before publication. Summaries are AI interpretation of the record, not part of it.
Our environment and health is at risk with all the different toxins found in landfills.. Landfills need to have detailed plans so we don't poison our precious natural resources and our health. Please support this bill.
Protecting our groundwater is one of the most important things we can do.
Please support this bill and keep New Hampshire safe!
I do not want over 10 MILLION GALLONS of toxic, PFAS-laden leachate that will eventually be produced annually, requiring it be trucked hundreds of miles for disposal at a wastewater treatment plant.
REGULATE LANDFILLS MORATORIUM ON PERMITTING We cannot despoil our only resource in this state, the environment
Living in Dalton, NH on Forest Lake, I feel very strongly that we must maintain and protect New Hampshire's natural environment. NHs greatest resource is its natural beauty. I have drank the water of Forest Lake, enjoyed swimming, fishing, boating, hiking in NH for over 50 years and would be horrified if such a pristine lake were polluted by a landfill situated close to the lake. There are many suitable places to site landfill in NH without endangering our lakes and waterways. Thank you for your service and consideration, Nancy Mittleman
Living part time in Dalton, NH and part time in Oregon, I feel very strongly that we must maintain and protect New Hampshire's natural environment. NHs greatest resource is its natural beauty. Thank you for your service and consideration, William Stiffler
Brought up in Bethlehem, NH and returning yearly for the past 40 years I feel very strongly that we must maintain and protect New Hampshire's natural environment. NHs greatest resource is its natural beauty. Thank you for your service and consideration, Wesley Simonson
Brought up in Bethlehem, NH and returning yearly for the past 45 years I feel very strongly that we must maintain and protect New Hampshire's natural environment. NHs greatest resource is its natural beauty. Thank you for your service and consideration, John Meisse
I strongly urge your support for a leachate management plan requirement in new landfill applications. Our New Hampshire lakes are in danger, with rising cyanobacteria blooms endangering water quality, along with recreation, wildlife, and lakeshore property values. As the changing climate, increasing lakeshore development, and use of fertilizers all contribute to this problem, regulating leachate management is essential. Planning to prevent leachate pollution before it occurs will be far more effective than trying to clean up a water body afterward.
These last few years, as more landfill bills have been coming up for consideration, we have been learning about leachate -- that the linings of landfills are not always sufficiently robust to contain leachate, that a soaking rain may help any leachate overflow its bounds, and that a landfill lining will deteriorate over time. The leachate that escapes a landfill is likely to contain toxics such as PFAS. Before a project as long-lasting as a landfill is permitted, a plan such as HB566 would require seems necessary. Remediation of toxics soaking into ground and water from exposed leachate is expensive and difficult -- please require a plan that would ensure leakage would not occur in the first place.
The system is working. Children should not be seduced into marriage before they are old enough to understand what it means.
Dear House Judiciary Committee members, I am opposed to bill HB476 that would further restrict abortion, reproductive healthcare, in New Hampshire. As you may know, 78% of New Hampshire citizens believe there should be a right to get an abortion, in every state of the U.S. Also, the great majority - I believe it is 68% - of us here in New Hampshire oppose a 15-week abortion ban. Therefore, your opposition to this bill would be representing the will of the people you represent. On a personal note, my niece was able to obtain an abortion after a rape that she would never have been able to prove, before Roe V. Wade was overturned. She went on to have to beautiful healthy boys. I believe all women and families should have that opportunity. Please oppose HB476 and support the health and welfare of New Hampshire families. Thank you for your service to the people of our State.
Do the right thing and vote to support this bill. NH is better off if you support this bill!
Do the right thing and vote to support this bill.
Pls support this important bill. It IS the right thing to do!
I strongly support this bill
This is just common sense. It only makes sense that before siting a landfill, the surrounding communities would be made aware of leachate issues and the plans to deal with them.
I have been giving testimony to your committee on this question for six years. When we began our testimony few if any but specialists in biology and chemistry knew anything about leachate, its treacherous relationship to cancer, its resistance to treatment of any kind. Since then, the waste management industry has attempted to mask the dangers of it by speaking of various pilot projects to remove PFAS. They began suggesting that the sewage treatment process was sufficient in our various water treatment facilities, a process that DOES NOT remove PFAS from the "treated" water, but to add injury to insult, then discharges the "treated" water back into the state's rivers, polluting private wells as well and entire community aquifers down state. As the public and legislators have become better educated on the inadequacy of such "treatment" several corporation are now touting various "research projects" suggesting that science will ultimately solve the problem. I pray it does. But until it does, it is essential and any application for a landfill in this state, public or private, new or already established, have a permit that indicate a detailed plan for leachate management that is reasonable within the bounds of what we currently know about leachate's dangers, especially with regard to Land Fills is not only on file, but is being adhered to. Please vote OTP and send this on to our new Governor who has made the safety of our state's drinking water a priority. Many thanks for your consideration and your valiant work on behalf of the people on New Hampshire. Fred R. Anderson (The Rev. Dr., H.R.) 676 West Forest Lake Road, Whitefield (but with a Bethlehem mailing address).
I do NOT want a landfill near Forest Lake
Please do the right thing and support this bill with your vote!
I do NOT want a landfill near Forest Lake
I do NOT want a landfill near Forest Lake
I believe there should never be a Landfill near a water way . Especially not Forest Lake . There has been a lot of flooding and the risk of over flow from the land fill is huge . Even with all the safety measures in place . Plus Mass. should keep their own trash .
It is very important that the plans for handling leachate during the lifetime of a landfill and after its closure be adequately provided for before the landfill is approved. The impact of leachate on our lives, health, and environment will be significant and long-lasting.