County to dissolve Macon solid waste agreement

By Lisa Majors-Duff

Jackson County Commission Chairman Stacy Buchanan reported Tuesday that steps are being taken to terminate a 1995 solid waste agreement between his board and the Macon County Board of Commissioners.

"We've already spent enough money in Macon County," said Buchanan, who indicated he and other Jackson County representatives had met with Macon County officials last week to discuss hiring an independent engineering firm to put a value on the contract's assets.

The subject of the two-county solid waste agreement, which allows Jackson County to use the Macon County Landfill and pay half the operating costs, came up during Tuesday's meeting at the Justice Center. Board members are considering accepting a $21.15 per ton bid for landfill disposal from Waste Management in Homer, Ga., that is less than half, $43 a ton, the quoted cost in Franklin.

If approved, the Waste Management contract would begin July 1, and Jackson County would stop sending solid waste to Franklin, Buchanan said. "I think (Macon County) would prefer to milk us for another year, but I'm not interested in that," he said.

Facing a state mandate to close its unlined Dillsboro landfill, Jackson County officials paid Macon County $1.38 million in 1995 for the right to use its newly-constructed lined landfill. The agreement called for Jackson and Macon to split the cost of operations and required Jackson County to site a landfill for use by both when the Franklin facility closed in an estimated 20 years.

Discussions concerning dissolving the contract with Macon County started soon after newly-elected commissioners took office in 1998. That's when plans were made to construct the Mineral Springs Road transfer station, which at first handled only construction and demolition debris but was designed for expansion to solid waste and recycling materials.

"The contract we have with Macon County is a bad contract, one we inherited," Buchanan said.

Hiring a mutually-agreed upon engineer to evaluate the contract's worth is one of the first steps required to dissolve the two-county agreement, he said, and HDR of Charlotte was tentatively chosen last week by both counties to perform this task.

"If we stay in the contract, (Macon County) intends to hold our feet to fire on siting a landfill between Franklin and Sylva," said Buchanan. "I'm for terminating the contract. Even if we end up owing them money, it will be substantially less than siting a landfill in Jackson County."

Board members also learned Tuesday that they'd been over charged by nearly $70,000 for remediation and post-closure costs involved at the Macon County Landfill. These costs were included in tipping fees, which have decreased from $55 a ton a couple of years ago to $51 this year and $43 proposed for next year.

Even with the $8 tipping fee reduction proposed for next year, accepting the Homer, Ga., bid of $21.15 should save the county about $140,000 per year, said solid waste consultant John Thornton.

Also Tuesday, Thornton reported to the board some the details involved in the county's three-year Comprehensive Solid Waste Management update required by the state. The document is part of a 10-year plan that required each county to reduce its waste stream by 40 percent by 2007, he said.

"In 1997, when the first plan was due, the state realized the 40 percent reduction rate was unrealistic," Thornton said. In fact, only four North Carolina counties have meet the goal, with Jackson actually increasing its waste stream since the plan was submitted six years ago.

"Jackson keeps going in the wrong direction," Thornton said of a recent 18 percent increase in solid waste.

Instead of sticking to the 40 percent reduction goal, the state now requires counties to continue with steps to improve their numbers. Steps taken here include a newly-enacted solid waste ordinance, recycling center improvements - including a two-part separation system instead of the current eight and below-grade collection containers for easier access - and additional education opportunities for residents.

Also on the subject of solid waste, commissioners plan to vote on a break-even contract for recycling collection contract submitted by FRC of Charlotte. The county's current contract for recycling collections with Webster Enterprises expires June 30.

FRC, the company being considered to take on a multi-county Land of Sky recycling effort, plans to build a staging area in Buncombe County within 90 to 120 days, reported Jackson County Manger Ken Westmoreland. Until that facility is constructed, Jackson County will have an added transportation expense, he said.

In preparation for a new collection system, the following bids are under consideration:

White goods recycling - Desoto Trail Construction of Franklin was low bidder with 25 percent of gross receipts being paid to the county.

Tire recycling - U.S. Tire Recycling of Concord was low bidder at $91 a ton.

White goods storage pad - Western Builders of Dillsboro was low bidder at $9,800.

Recycling storage pad - Western Builders low bidder at $98,400.

Recycling storage building - Morton Buildings of Fletcher was only bidder at $36,528.

The bids will be acted upon during the board's next regular meeting Tuesday, June 17, at the Justice Center.

Back to Top Stories.