Sanitation Commissioner John J. Doherty has appointed Harry Szarpanski, a 38-year veteran of the Department, as the new Deputy Commissioner for the Bureau of Long Term Export (LTE), thereby elevating the bureau's status in the Department and underscoring the Bureau's key role in developing and implementing the City's Comprehensive Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP).  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Szarpanski was the Assistant Commissioner of the Bureau of Long Term Export.

Commissioner Doherty said: "Harry Szarpanski, over his years of outstanding service to the Department, has earned this new position of Deputy Commissioner. Mr.  Szarpanski is directly responsible for the development and implementation of the City's 20-year Solid Waste Management Plan. His vast knowledge of the SWMP and its importance to future generations of New York City residents will ensure the Department's quality of service in developing an effective and environmentally sound rail-to-barge based infrastructure for Sanitation-managed waste transport and disposal. He is a great addition to the dynamic team of professional managers in Sanitation."

As Deputy Commissioner in charge of the Bureau of LTE, Mr. Szarpanski continues the ongoing full implementation of the City's SWMP which was overwhelming adopted by the City Council and  approved by the New York State Department of  Environmental Conservation in 2006.  Some of his responsibilities in implementing the SWMP are: leading the City's team in negotiating  20-year contracts  -- valued at over $6 billion -- for the transport and disposal of City-managed waste; overseeing the design, obtaining the required permits and construction of new Marine Transfer Stations to facilitate the export of waste by barge and rail; coordinating and conducting public hearings and briefings for all involved interested parties; developing internal Sanitation strategies to insure timely implementation of the SWMP; overseeing preparation, production, and distribution
of the SWMP progress reports for the Commissioner, City Hall, and the City Council.

Other duties include recommending appropriate state-of-the-art alternative and emerging waste technologies to the Mayor and the Commissioner in addition to managing the construction and permitting process of the Staten Island Transfer Station.

During his tenure as Assistant Commissioner, Mr. Szarpanski was instrumental in developing and securing approvals for the SWMP.   As Director of Special Projects, he managed the planning and implementation of major Departmental programs including the gas recovery and emissions control project at the Fresh Kills landfill, the Rikers Island food waste composting facility, and the Fresh Kills compost facility.

Deputy Commissioner Szarpanski, who joined the Department of Sanitation in 1970, is a New York State licensed professional engineer.  He is a graduate of Stuyvesant High School, and earned a Bachelor's of Science and Master's in Engineering from City College School of Engineering in Manhattan.  He resides in New Jersey with his wife and daughter.