Seneca County officials back bill to let counties leave multi-county solid waste districts

Anthony Paradiso, a Seneca County commissioner, and Julie Richards, health commissioner for the Seneca County General Health District, testified before the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee in support of Senate Bill 147, which would create a process for counties to withdraw from multi-county solid waste districts.

Paradiso told the committee that Seneca County is a member of the Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca Solid Waste Management District (OSS), a three-county district governed by three commissioners from each county. He said the Wind Waste landfill in Sandusky County brings in the majority of waste currently handled by the district and that Seneca County supplies the bulk of OSS revenue; Paradiso described Wind Waste as receiving approximately 96% of incoming waste from out of state while OSS’s budget contributions are heavily weighted toward Seneca County. He said the landfill was approved for an expansion of more than 43% on Sept. 9, 2024, and that Seneca County passed a resolution on Nov. 14, 2024, to withdraw from the multi-county district; the request to withdraw was denied by the other two counties.

Paradiso argued SB147 would provide local elected commissioners the ability to explore withdrawal, negotiate exit plans and, if appropriate, create or join other arrangements. He said the bill would establish a 24-month process, rely on EPA guidance, and would not require a countywide voter referendum, adding that the withdrawal would be accomplished at the county-commissioner level rather than by direct voter initiative.

Julie Richards described the Seneca County General Health District’s efforts to expand landfill oversight, including creation of a landfill division and hiring a sanitarian in training. She said the county currently receives $0.40 per ton of waste and that OSS has not reimbursed requested expenses in full for landfill oversight. Richards described multiple recent incidents that required oversight: two leachate spills in the past 30 days (one she said involved 53,000 tons of leachate) and a railcar derailment that yielded about 200 cubic feet of contaminated soil now slated for transport to a permitted landfill. She told the committee that regulating and inspecting a very large and expanding landfill requires specialized staff and that Ohio has a shortage of credentialed registered environmental health specialists (sanitarians).

Richards said Seneca County has hired consultants to train inspectors and to provide technical landfill expertise; she told the committee hiring out-of-state consultants can be necessary to avoid conflicts of interest because many Ohio consultants have previously worked with Wind Waste. She said OSS suggested grant options but that recent county grant applications were denied and that OSS has not reliably covered consultant or salary expenses the county requested. Richards argued that SB147 would allow the county to manage revenue from out-of-state waste more directly and to allocate funds for equipment, staffing, emergency response and oversight.

Senator Manchester asked how Seneca County leaving OSS might affect Sandusky County; Paradiso said the bill would only open a discussion and a 24-month planning window during which counties could negotiate alternatives such as Sandusky joining Seneca or seeking other partners. Ranking Member Hicks Hudson asked procedural questions and Paradiso said the bill’s process would not require a public referendum and would proceed at the commissioners’ level.

Witnesses noted written proponent testimony filed by Donald Minnell, mayor of Fostoria. The committee held the testimony and took no vote on SB147 during the hearing.