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Council acknowledges Maryland Environmental Service revenue bonds to fund Midshore 2 landfill cells
Summary
Talbot County Council acknowledged an administrative resolution recognizing Maryland Environmental Service plans to issue up to $28 million in revenue bonds to construct and operate two landfill cells at the Midshore 2 Regional Landfill.
Talbot County Council heard an administrative resolution acknowledging the Maryland Environmental Service’s plan to issue revenue bonds, in a maximum original aggregate principal amount not to exceed $28,000,000, to finance construction and related costs for Cell Number 5 and Cell Number 1 at the Midshore 2 Regional Landfill in Ridgely, Caroline County.
Martha Sparks, Talbot County finance director, told the council the county is a member of a four-county partnership with Kent, Queen Anne’s and Caroline counties and that the Maryland Environmental Service (MES) is authorized under the parties’ waste disposal service agreement to issue bonds to finance landfill construction. Sparks said the revenue bonds would be repaid from tipping-fee revenue at the Midshore 2 facility and are not direct general-obligation debt of Talbot County, though the county is contingently liable under the service agreement. Sparks also cited the Midshore Regional Landfill’s outstanding debt listed in the fiscal year 2024 financial statements as $17,297,963.
A council member noted that landfill construction is costly but required to meet federal requirements and to avoid more expensive alternatives later; Sparks confirmed that building additional cells at Midshore 2 helps defer higher costs from developing other sites. The administrative resolution asks the council to acknowledge and accept MES’s planning, design and construction of the landfill cells, to acknowledge the county’s continuing obligations under the service agreement, and to authorize county approval and execution of documents related to the financing, such as a continuing disclosure agreement.
The council took action to acknowledge the administrative resolution; meeting minutes record a motion and second and a vote call. The recorded presentation and materials indicate the bonds will be revenue bonds payable from landfill tipping fees and not direct county general obligation debt, though the county’s contingent liability remains under the service agreement.
