A controversial plan to extend the life of O'ahu's main garbage dump faces its first big hurdle Wednesday, when it goes before the Honolulu Planning Commission.

The Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill is scheduled to stop accepting trash in less than six months, but Mayor Mufi Hannemann insists there is no realistic alternative but to keep it open longer.

He's seeking permission to extend the site's current operating permit for two more years, while an environmental study evaluates a separate plan to expand the site by about 40 acres so it can remain open for another 15 years.

At stake are tens of millions of dollars in fees the city collects each year from garbage haulers who use the dump; its impact on the environment and value of surrounding properties; and the potential cost of alternative trash disposal methods.

Opponents, including the nearby Ko Olina Resort and Marina, hope to shut down the landfill as soon as possible, after complaining for years about visual blight, dump-truck traffic, windblown trash and occasional reeking odors.

The resort's community association and one of its allies and prominent residents, state Senate President Colleen Hanabusa, have petitioned to intervene before the nine-member Planning Commission and fight the extension plan. Two neighborhood boards that represent surrounding communities also oppose the extension.

"I'd like to think the commission won't just rubber stamp the city's plan," Hanabusa said. "I would like to think the members of the commission can look at this objectively."

The commission may not issue an immediate ruling Wednesday. But if the panel approves the plan, it would still face a potentially tougher fight before the state Land Use Commission, which has the final say.

If the extension is rejected, the city should still have enough time to finalize a long-stalled plan to ship trash to the Mainland, Hanabusa said.

"The landfill is supposed to close next year, and more than anything else, if government tells you something is going to happen, it's got to keep its word," she said.

But Hannemann has repeatedly said that shipping trash away would not eliminate the need for a local landfill, which must be available for overflows, emergencies or shipping disruptions.

"Our experts have told us that we'll always need a landfill of some sort," said Bill Brennan, Hannemann's spokesman. "Even if we ship and use new waste-to-energy technology, there will still be a need to landfill material that can't be shipped or can't be converted to electricity."

RUNNING OUT OF ROOM

The company that operates the dump for the city has prepared a new 5 1/2-acre cell to hold at least a year's worth of additional trash. Some space remains available in older cells, but there will be no room for additional cells unless the 40-acre expansion plan wins approval. The expansion would be at the rear of the site, and involve digging out tons of rock and dirt from the surrounding mountainsides to make room for more trash.

The operator, Waste Management of Hawaii, has worked to address complaints by keeping the area of exposed garbage small, and using portable fences to catch blowing trash. The garbage also is covered with dirt each night.

When The Advertiser visited the site last week, the exposed trash was confined to an area the size of a parking lot for less than 50 cars. Strong odors were limited to the immediate area, and very little trash seemed to blow beyond it.

Waste Management has replaced a load-weighing scale that stirred up controversy when it gave faulty readings earlier this year. A new site manager also has been hired to replace one who was fired after allegedly soliciting donations for a community group from customers while on the job.

This month, the company began planting dozens of Norfolk pine and monkeypod trees along the edge of the dump to help camouflage it from traffic along Farrington Highway.

But there's no hiding the site from areas farther away, including hotel rooms, condominiums and time-share units at Ko Olina.

The fight over the landfill's future is reaching a boil as big development plans move forward at Ko Olina. Walt Disney Parks & Resorts announced last month that it will break ground next year for a luxury resort on 21 acres at Ko Olina that the company is purchasing for $144 million.

CONTROVERSIAL SITE

The dump opened in 1989 on 64.5 acres, and has generated much controversy in recent years after expansions and health violations. Former Mayor Jeremy Harris had planned to shut it years ago, but reversed course after plans to expand the H-Power garbage-to-energy plant ran into City Council opposition, leaving more trash than the plant could handle.

In 2003, Harris' administration negotiated a deal to expand the dump by 21 acres and keep it open until next year, while seeking a new site. The council considered alternative locations — including Koko Crater — but voted in 2004 to keep the dump where it is and seek another expansion.

Setting up a new landfill elsewhere would take years of planning, environmental studies and permit applications, officials say. Hannemann has warned repeatedly that closing Waimanalo Gulch could force the city to seek space in a privately owned construction debris landfill in Nanakuli or seek a new site nearby — closer to homes and schools.

The city is evaluating several proposals that could lead to construction of a new garbage-to-energy facility in Campbell Industrial Park, and a reduction in the amount of trash going to the dump. A decision is expected in January, but the project could cost $350 million or more and take years to build.

Waste Management said it has corrected all but one of the 18 types of violations the state Health Department cited the dump for last year, which resulted in a $2.8 million fine.

The remaining violation concerns ash from the H-Power plant that is piled higher than a permit allows.

Waste Management has yet to pay the fine, but negotiations over a settlement are pending. The Health Department will consider in December whether to modify the permit to allow the higher ash level.

Environmentalist and former Planning Commission member Jeff Mikulina, who heads the Sierra Club's Hawai'i chapter, said the dispute over the landfill should remind people of the need to recycle more and generate less trash.

"We have a long way to go on increasing our recycling rate," he said. "We're on an island, and I think we forget that sometimes."

Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com.