The state environmental agency is giving the final go-ahead for an expansion of Juniper Ridge Landfill, finding that it should be enlarged to meet solid waste disposal needs for an additional 11 years.

The state-owned landfill in Old Town and Alton will be expanded by 61 acres, which will allow for nearly 12 million cubic yards of additional capacity, according to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

Juniper Ridge is currently 780 acres and is owned by the state Bureau of General Services. It accepts many types of trash, including construction and demolition debris, municipal solid waste incinerator ash and sludge from municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants.

“The proposed expansion provides Maine municipalities with a short-and long term, cost effective, environmentally secure disposal option for a wide variety of non-hazardous wastes,” according to the application for expansion filed in June.

Following feedback from the public, DEP amended its final decision to require:

• The installation of a treatment system for landfill leachate for PFAS, commonly known as forever chemicals that are linked to certain kinds of cancer.
• The hiring of a third-party odor consultant to analyze air quality and complaints and to come up with recommendations.
• Additional scans of the landfill cover to find out if there are “fugitive landfill gas emissions.”
• The establishment of an alert system to let the public know about “significant landfill events.”