Lane County commissioners on Jan. 7 approved two waste-management actions with St. Vincent de Paul of Lane County that the county said will keep appliances and mattresses out of the landfill and ensure refrigerants are handled correctly.

The board first approved Order 25-01-07-13, a contract with St. Vincent de Paul for appliance recycling that includes handling appliances that contain refrigerants. County staff described the contractor's role as ensuring refrigerants are removed and disposed of properly and recycling remaining metal; staff said the contract is funded by user fees and pays for itself. The board approved that order with recorded passage (the motion passed with a recorded tally of 4-0; Commissioner Buck recused herself from the vote because of a declared conflict of interest).

Later in the meeting the board approved Order 25-01-07-14, a contract amendment to make the county whole on prior mattress recycling work and to reflect changes from Oregon's new statewide mattress recycling law. Jeff Orlandini of Waste Management explained that mattresses are now accepted free at the Glenwood Transfer Station under the statewide law and that the amendment closes out the older contract by paying St. Vincent de Paul for services already provided. The amendment passed with the same recusal pattern (4-0 with Commissioner Buck recused).

Commissioner Buck publicly recused herself before the votes, saying the items involved St. Vincent de Paul and a person connected to her. Jeff Orlandini, representing county Waste Management, said the contract has been awarded to St. Vincent de Paul multiple times over the years and that the arrangement keeps materials out of the Short Mountain landfill and reduces cross-county shipping of bulky items.

Board members who spoke praised the program's role in reducing landfill pressure and called the local provider's work valuable to the community. No amendments or follow-up tasks beyond oversight and contract execution were specified during the meeting.

Votes at a glance: Order 25-01-07-13 (contract) approved; Order 25-01-07-14 (contract amendment) approved. Commissioner Buck was recused from both votes.