By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
The Wood County Landfill is running out of room even faster than predicted.
When 2016 rolled around, it looked as if the existing permitted space at the landfill would last another 11 years. By Tuesday, that remaining lifespan had shortened to eight to 10 years. The news was presented to the county commissioners on Tuesday by landfill staff and consultants.
The reason for the faster filling is three-fold. First, the Henry County landfill closed, resulting in much of the garbage from that neighboring county coming to Wood County. Second, as the economy rebounds, the increase in new construction creates more debris, and people tend to buy new items and throw out the old, rather than stretching out their usefulness. And third, improvements at Wood County Landfill are making it more attractive to waste haulers, said Ken Vollmar, landfill manager.
The Wood County Landfill received 38,000 tons of trash in 2014, which jumped to 49,000 tons last year. At the current rate, this year’s tonnage may top off over 60,000 tons.
The landfill area covers more than 100 acres, with 43 of those in the current footprint approved by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for dumping. The site has about 60 more usable acres – and depending on the tonnage, the landfill has between 50 and 75 more good years, according to Shawn McGee, of Hull and Associates, consultants to the county.
But McGee warned that while the lifespan of the current permitted area is eight to 10 years, the county needs to get working on the expansion now. It takes three to four years for the EPA to review an expansion plan, plus time to do more borings and install new monitoring wells.
“We’re getting to a crunch time,” Vollmar said. After the permit is granted, a lot of preparation work needs to be done at the landfill, he said.
Vollmar reminded the commissioners of the landfill coming close to running out of permitted space in the early 1990s.
The first phase of the proposed expansion would “piggyback” on top of a section already being used. The landfill is allowed to reach a height just over 100 feet.
County commissioners listen to landfill staff.
The commissioners were also presented with some costly equipment requests at the landfill adding up to more than $1 million. One of two compactors needs to be replaced, as well as a small loader. The compactor originally was priced at $940,000, but with a government discount it will cost $752,000. The loader will cost $280,000.
The county would finance the equipment over several years.
“We’re taking more tonnage. We’re using the equipment more,” Vollmar said. “We have to have this to operate.”
The commissioners asked Vollmar what would happen if they didn’t approve the equipment purchases. He said the repair budget would need to be increased.
“Plus they are out of business,” if the equipment breaks down, Wood County Administrator Andrew Kalmar pointed out. And that won’t help the budget, he added.
The commissioners were told Wood County benefits from owning its landfill.
“That’s something the county is lucky to have,” said Bill Petruzzi, with Hull and Associates. Petruzzi explained that not many counties in Ohio own and operate their own landfills.
“It’s proven to be a good community asset,” he said.
The county has worked hard to keep the landfill in compliance with all EPA regulations, Petruzzi said. “The landfill’s in good shape. And you’ve been proactive,” protecting humans and the environment, he said.
As waste degrades, it generates methane gas and leachate – which the county has worked to monitor. Nearly 30 wells have been installed throughout the site to monitor stormwater runoff, explosive gas and groundwater. Two groundwater wells recently registered “statistical hits,” so they will be watched to see if the hits were caused naturally or by leachate, Petruzzi said. Some older wells may need to be replaced, or some new wells installed.
“It’s an early detection system,” that identifies problems that could take a century to show up in groundwater, but must be maintained to stay in compliance with EPA rules.
McGee also said the landfill site, west of Bowling Green, has “good glacial geology.”
“Geologically speaking, this is the best place in Ohio for a landfill,” he said.
