Glenn county talking trash

A proposal for mandatory or “universal” garbage collection service reared its head again as county officials deal with mountains of trash, new contracts, new programs and new requirements by the end of the year.

The contract the county has with Waste Management expires Dec. 31 and customers will be faced with new rate increases, according to Public Works Director Dan Obermeyer.

“If the county implemented universal garbage service it would approximately double the number of customers and spread those increased costs around,” Obermeyer said. “It would also help to reduce illegal dumping.”

Obermeyer said the county may require county residents, with some exceptions, to take garbage service when it drafts a new contract that could also add more recycling and collection programs.

Obermeyer said the county must look at some long-term solutions pending legislative actions that may require the county to divert as much as 70 percent of its municipal solid waste from the landfill.

“We are currently barely meeting the required 50 percent diversion now,” Obermeyer said.

Adding the option of bi-weekly curbside recycling will add an additional $6 a month to the residential bill, Obermeyer said.

The increase diversion requirement and the high incidence of illegal dumping of “bulky” items, such as refrigerators and sofas into ditches and streams, may also prompt the county to implement more collection events at a central location, which would also add one to two dollars a month to the average residential bill.

There has been no public support in the past for mandatory garbage services, but county officials believe that may soon change when tipping fees at the landfill make a significant jump.

“People are not saving money by going to the landfill,” said Randy Murphy, Deputy Public Works Director.

County officials say tipping fees at the dump could skyrocket as the county moves forward with acquiring title to the landfill property through the process of eminent domain.

The board of supervisors condemned the property, belonging to the Coleman Foley Marital Trust, in 2007, and has tried but failed to negotiate an outright purchase.

The Solid Waste Enterprise Fund could not cover the cost of the acquisition and expansion improvements without a significant increase in fees, Murphy said.

Glenn County’s landfill, located on County Road 39, has been operating under an out-dated permit issued in 1992, but cannot be amended or replaced until the county can show the landfill site is under their control for at least 30 years post closure, county officials said.

Obermeyer said the acquisition of the title to the landfill property is a mandatory step to any action the county may wish to take, including closure, and the addition of new elements - such as a material recovery facility or other operations that are eco-friendly, such as a compost operation.