The city had agreed last year to close the dump by 2008, and yesterday's decision drew a mixed reaction. Opponents said the move will fuel cynicism about government, but Mayor Jeremy Harris and others said it is the only choice that makes sense.

Elsie Foster, who was born and raised on the Leeward Coast, said she wanted to cry after she heard the news. "It's always like this for us," she said. "Our lawmakers just don't hear us and they don't help. We're sick and tired of it. We're the last to get any kind of services."

Kamaki Kanahele, president of the Nanakuli Hawaiian Homestead Community Association, said the decision "has caused a blight on the Leeward Coast."

Councilman Rod Tam outlines the advantages of keeping the Waimanalo Gulch landfill open, including income from fees. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

Council chairman Donovan Dela Cruz, who voted with the majority, said he's hopeful the expansion won't be needed.

"Even though we had to make this decision, I want to make sure we pursue new technology so we don't need landfills," he said.

Also voting in favor of expanding the landfill were council members Romy Cachola, Ann Kobayashi, Barbara Marshall, Gary Okino and Rod Tam; in opposition were Charles Djou, Mike Gabbard and Nestor Garcia.

The exact size and timespan of the landfill expansion have not been decided. Harris had proposed a major expansion earlier, but agreed to a compromise last year that called for less space and the 2008 closure. The city now must now define its expansion proposal and seek approval from the state Land Use Commission.

Dela Cruz said the city must also immediately work to alleviate concerns that nearby residents have repeatedly raised about litter, dust and odor from the site. Harris said he strongly agrees the city should not be dependent on a landfill, but cautioned against "wishful thinking" about new methods of handling trash.

He said council opposition to expanding the H-Power garbage-to-energy incinerator is a key reason that trash remains a big problem for the city.

"The H-Power plant is facing more volume than it can handle, so we need to expand the plant," Harris said. "That is the best available technology right now."

Tam said choosing to expand the current landfill had been a very difficult decision. He said "outside sources coming in with money" had pushed strongly for a different choice, but he did not elaborate.

"If we let outside forces interfere in decision-making, we should be chastised, quite frankly," he said. "... I feel very strongly that we fought off outside financial interests that tried to twist our arm, so to speak."

Okino said it was very doubtful that various permits for a new landfill could be secured before the old one was scheduled to close. "If we give up Waimanalo Gulch in 2008 and we have no place to go, it could be disastrous to the city," he said.

And the city badly needs revenue that the landfill generates from companies that pay to use it, he said.

"We need that money to cover our refuse collection functions," he said. "We need that money to pay debt service for H-Power. It's not money we're throwing away or spending unwisely. That money is needed."

Ko Olina developer Jeff Stone said he was "extremely disappointed" by the council's decision, and did not believe the state would approve a landfill expansion. He said he was especially upset that Okino and some others said they based their vote partly on the city's need for revenue from the landfill.

"It was a decision over money," Stone said. "To sacrifice anybody on this island over money is absurd."

Colleen Hanabusa

Todd Apo

"There's always a positive side for everything, and one thing these hearings have done is mobilize the Wai'anae Coast community," said Hanabusa, D-21st (Nanakuli, Makaha).

Nanakuli resident Siaki Penitito said officials should spread the burden of handling the island's trash to the Windward side.

"The government always puts things on our side of the island," Penitito said. "It's so frustrating. We always have a problem with things and no one does anything for our side."

Newly elected councilman Todd Apo, who will represent the area, said he hopes the city can move quickly on alternatives to the landfill.

"It's easy for the city to continue on the course that it's on," he said. "I believe there's times when we need to shake things up to make things change."

Gabbard, who Apo will replace in January, had backed a proposal to ship the island's trash to the Mainland, and said he would continue to push for that solution.

"I want to make sure that Waimanalo Gulch closes by May 1, 2008, as the people of the Leeward Coast were originally promised," Gabbard said.

Garcia said he would propose a community benefits package that would include scholarships for environmental health study.

Yesterday's vote came after weeks of wrangling and criticism over surprise proposals to create a landfill in Koko Crater or Campbell Industrial Park.

"To say that selecting a landfill site was a difficult decision for us would be the understatement of the year," Cachola said.