Kazakh environmentalists visit Arden Landfill

Standing from left, Erica Deyarmin, Adam Finley and Rick Smitsky of Waste Management make a presentation Thursday to delegates from Kazakhstan. The Kazakh environmental professionals, who are being hosted by GlobalPittsburgh, are here to study green technologies and innovation in Western Pennsylvania. 

It may seem absurd to fly 6,000 miles to talk garbage, but that's what six professionals – plus one interpreter – did this week.

A group of environmentalists from Kazakhstan traveled to Western Pennsylvania to study green technology and innovation in the region. Their tour included a visit to Waste Management's Arden Landfill in Chartiers Township, where they learned about the company's recycling efforts, methods for protecting groundwater and sustainable energy plans, including their landfill gas-to-energy production.

The landfill, part of the largest waste management company in North America, is designed to generate about 4.8 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 4,000 homes for a year.

"We look at waste as a resource," Waste Management's Erika Deyarmin told the group. "We try to find reuses for all the waste we manage."

Aidar Kenesbekuly Makhambet, deputy general director of the Kazakh Research Institute of Ecology and Climate, said he is interested in alternative energy sources, like landfill gas and solar and wind power. Kazakhstan, a Central Asian country of about 17 million people, heavily relies on coal-generated electricity.

"Kazakhstan has adopted a good sustainability program to generate the economy," he said. "The target of our government is to transform from traditional power to new."

GlobalPittsburgh, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering international relationships, is hosting the delegates, allowing them to meet their professional counterparts, learn about governmental initiatives and promote best practices.

According to Gail Shrott, director of GlobalPittsburgh's International Leaders program, the goal is to create new collaborations between the United States and Kazakhstan to help protect public health and the environment, and also benefit both economies.

The program is funded by the Open World Leadership Center at the Library of Congress, designed to create mutual understanding between the United States and Eurasia.

"We are so pleased to do this and happy to connect them," Shrott said.

The environmentalists also learned about waste diversion at the Three Rivers Arts Festival in Pittsburgh and met with representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection, universities and private companies.

It wasn't all shop talk for the group, though. They stayed with GlobalPittsburgh host families and took part in several cultural activities, like a walking tour of a conservatory and the city, as well as an outdoor concert.

But, Thursday, their focus was on the landfill as they took notes and asked questions of Rick Smitsky, Waste Management district manager.

"Hopefully, we have presented something you will find beneficial," he said.

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