SPSA secures permits for landfill expansion through 2060; board weighing 20‑year processing contract

Southeastern Public Service Authority executives told Norfolk City Council that regulatory permits for landfill Cells 8 and 9 are finalized and that SPSA is negotiating a large alternative‑disposal contract that would reduce landfill tonnage and require member communities to amend their current use‑and‑support agreements.

SPSA Executive Director Dennis Bagley said the agency recently received the required Section 401 and Section 404 permits to construct Cells 8 and 9, which — with existing inventory — extend regional landfill capacity through 2060. "By getting the permits to expand the regional landfill in Cells 8 and 9, [that] will give you capacity through the year 2060," Bagley said, noting the permitting process took about five years and required tradeoffs because much of the expansion is in wetlands.

Bagley said SPSA issued an RFP for alternative waste disposal and is finalizing negotiations with Commonwealth Sortation LLC, a Colorado‑based firm that proposes mixed‑waste sorting using AI, robotics and pyrolysis for organics. Under the proposed agreement, the contractor would guarantee diversion: a contractual guarantee of 20% recycling and a 30% organics diversion to pyrolysis, with an overall guaranteed landfill diversion of 50% (the project team said the technology could achieve about 60% but the contract guarantee was set to 50% to provide a buffer). Bagley said the contractor would pay more than $100 million in regional investment and that the firm’s current facility can process about 120,000 tons per year; the planned contract would cover more than 450,000 tons and require phased capacity additions through 2028.

Bagley told council that if Norfolk and the other seven SPSA member localities do nothing, the current use‑and‑support agreements automatically renew for a second 10‑year term; SPSA is asking member localities to sign an amendment extending commitments to 20 years so the contractor can secure financing for its investment. He said the amendment would only take effect if SPSA executes a contract by Dec. 1; the SPSA board must approve the contract by a 75% supermajority (12 of 16 votes) or the amendment would be null and void. "We're asking each of the member communities to extend or amend their current use of support agreements to 20 years," Bagley said. "But what we're saying is that that would only take effect if SPSA enters into a contract with a third party to process our waste by December 1."

Financial context discussed: current regional tipping fee cited by Bagley is about $65 per ton; consultants estimated that hauling to a third‑party landfill in 2036 if no expansion exists could cost about $125 per ton. City staff said preliminary negotiations with the vendor indicate an all‑in tipping fee to member localities in the mid‑$80s per ton, but that number was still being refined. City staff and Bagley said the proposed contract could combine some existing recycling disposal services and create potential savings, though specific budget impacts remained under negotiation.

Councilmembers asked for clarifications on timelines and financial impacts. Bagley said that if the Commonwealth Sortation contract reduces landfill tonnage by roughly 50%, SPSA projects the regional landfill would last through the end of the century (to about 2100) under those diversion assumptions. He said the board believes there is support to move forward but that board approval and further contract work remain to be completed.

The presentation was informational; no council vote on amending Norfolk’s use‑and‑support agreement occurred at the work session. Bagley and staff said SPSA will return with additional details and that member community decisions are expected this fall and by the December deadline if the contract is to proceed.