Madison County hosts informational meetings about landfill options

WAMPSVILLE, N.Y. — The Madison County Department of Solid Waste will host several informational sessions as it continues long-term planning for the county’s solid-waste management system.

The sessions are open to the public and will provide an overview of current operations as well as the Cornerstone Engineering and Geology PLLC 2022 study findings.

The report, released in February, showed that current fees are not sufficient to cover the cost of operations, capital equipment, debt, and long-term management of the county’s landfill. Unless changes are made to the current system, fees will need to increase significantly to fully fund the costs as well as the future responsibilities of landfill closure and post-closure monitoring.

The county is exploring options beyond continually increasing rates including a public-private partnership to lease and operate the county’s facilities.

“Rather than simply raising rates indefinitely to compensate for increasing inflationary and regulatory compliance costs, it is important to explore all options that may help to maintain more reasonable rates for our community,” Director of Solid Waste Management Amy Miller said in a press release. “We encourage residents to attend one of our informational sessions to learn more about what options we are exploring and why.”

Sessions will be held Tuesday, July 25 at 6 p.m. at Sullivan Free Library, 101 Falls Boulevard, Chittenango and Tuesday, August 1 at 6 p.m. at the Cazenovia Public Library, 100 Albany St, Cazenovia.

Those planning to attend are encouraged to register at https://www.madisoncounty.ny.gov/FormCenter/Solid-Waste-4/Registration-for-Long-Term-Planning-Comm-205.

For more information about the planning process, visit www.madisoncounty.ny.gov/2938/Long-Term-Planning.