Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Santa Cruz County outlines Buena Vista landfill replacement, explores methane-to-hydrogen and organics processing
Summary
County staff told supervisors the Buena Vista landfill has roughly 4–6 years of capacity left and proposed a transfer station and alternative processing options — including methane-to-hydrogen — while continuing edible food recovery and SB 1383 implementation.
Santa Cruz County officials told the Board of Supervisors on Jan. 14 that the Buena Vista landfill has roughly four to six years of remaining capacity at current disposal rates and that the county is moving forward with planning, procuring and environmental review for a replacement transfer station and organics-processing options.
The briefing, presented for the county’s Recycling and Solid Waste Services, outlined a project schedule and funding picture. Staff said a bid for the Ben Lomond transfer station project was scheduled to be issued Feb. 12, 2025, with bids due March 26, 2025; construction is estimated at about 200 days and the October 2024 cost estimate for construction is $8.2 million. County staff also said closure costs for the Buena Vista landfill are currently estimated at $15 million to $20 million in today’s dollars and that the county closure fund holds about $14 million. The county has a five‑year parcel-based infrastructure and closure charge that began in 2023, and staff said the charge reduces the amount the county will need to borrow for construction.
Why this matters: the county’s south-county residents rely on local disposal access, and state laws including SB 1383…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
