Published: September 14, 2008 07:03 am      

Landfill could generate new revenue

Accepting out-of-county waste may bring in $1.8 M

The county report indicating a need for a new cell: Allegany County study on the need for a new cell




CUMBERLAND — Along with lower than market average dumping fees for Allegany County residents, a new 20-year contract with Mountainview Landfill operator Waste Management could result in $1.8 million in new revenue by accepting out-of-county waste.

Waste Management board members voted on Aug. 6 to recommend finalization for the contract based on the negotiated items, said Public Works Director Steve Young on Thursday during a presentation at the county commission meeting. Board members also expressed interest in the creation of a Single Stream Recycling program at the Vale Summit area facility off state Route 36.

The host fee for out-of-county waste, Young said, would be put toward the county’s solid waste and recycling programs. At virtually no cost to the county, Waste Management would collect recyclables at a newly constructed facility at the Vale Summit location and haul by truck the items for processing in Howard County.

Trucks that currently bring garbage to Mountainview leave empty. Hauling recyclable material away from the facility would increase efficiency, Young said.

Waste Management also would like to build a sewer line extension to the renovated George’s Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant to transfer the collected leachate.

Commissioner Jim Stakem said he toured a Worcester County landfill during the Maryland Association of Counties summer conference last month. There, Stakem learned how operators convert methane gas into energy. Stakem asked Young if Waste Management officials had considered that as a possibility in Allegany County.

Waste Management’s District Manager Alissa Kyle and environmental protection manager and engineer Edward Van Keuren briefed the commissioners in July there was not enough methane gas at the 39-acre cell to produce enough energy.

Said Young on Thursday: “I’m confident that if they could make money, they would.”

The landfill is reaching its capacity. The new contract calls for the permitting and construction of a new cell — a far more affordable option than building a new landfill or a transfer station. A June report indicating the need for a new cell is available online at www.times-news.com.

The next step is for attorneys for both sides to draft a legal document for review. The current contract is set to expire in February 2013.

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.