Who We Are

The Conservancy Initiative is a non-profit organization which was formed to oppose the expansion of the Arbor Hills Landfill in 2015. The Conservancy Initiative members are all Volunteers. Many know “The Conservancy Initiative” as “Stop Arbor Hills”. We are always looking for more volunteers. Please contact any of the Directors if you want to get more involved.

Our Mission

Our mission is to improve the environment by working with neighbors, government entities, area businesses and community leaders to create a clean and safe place to live and work.

What We Do - How We Do It

Our volunteers work with government agencies to demand environmental compliance at the landfill. We strongly believe that when the landfill is operated in compliance with USEPA regulations the chances for odors in the community are minimal. Volunteers make regular contacts with EGLE (formerly MDEQ) inspectors and permit engineers to monitor the landfill’s progress towards obtaining compliance. We use Freedom of Information Requests along with persistent phone calls to gain access to public information. Volunteers meet with Township Trustees and State legislators to keep landfill issues in the spotlight. When necessary, The Conservancy Initiative gets vocal and asks the community for help. We attend public meetings and make sure the local media is aware of issues.

What We've Achieved

  • Successfully blocked a request by Advanced Disposal to expand the landfill in 2015 - 2016. We expect there will be another request in the near future.

  • Designed and launched a web-based community odor reporting system. Odor complaints are reported directly to the landfill, EGLE, and Northville Township Trustees.

  • Proposed and implemented a “No Truck Zone” on Six Mile Road eliminating landfill truck traffic from travelling past Northville High, Ridgewood Elementary, and many residential neighborhoods.

  • With the help of the Northville Township Board of Trustees a Northville Township Landfill working group has been formed. The group is comprised of a cross-section of Northville residents and several township trustees to address continuing landfill issues. The working group reports out at monthly township trustee meetings.

  • Established open communication channels with EGLE and USEPA to gain updates to landfill compliance matters.

  • Arbor Hills Landfill has been the subject of several recent settlements to resolve environmental violations. The Conservancy Initiative and Community Involvement contributed to bringing these Enforcement Actions. Since 2016, Arbor Hills has paid for

    • $1,577,834 in fines

    • at least $27,000,000 in capital investments to correct deficiencies

    • more than $2,000,000 in voluntary projects to reduce penalties.

    • Increase monitoring and reporting to EGLE (the costs of are difficult to quantify)

    • 2 enforcement cases remain open

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