County Revisits Landfill Siting; Horse Ridge Re-enters Consideration After Environmental Overlay Changes

BEND, Ore. — Deschutes County’s Solid Waste director told commissioners Sept. 29 that the county reopened its landfill siting process after negotiations for a previously recommended site (the Moon Pit) failed, and that a multi-parcel area near Horse Ridge has returned to consideration following revisions to environmental overlays.

Tim Brownell, Solid Waste director, said the county’s siting process began in 2022 and narrowed candidates from more than 200 parcels down to a handful. The board had previously accepted a staff recommendation for an aggregate-mine site called Moon Pit but negotiations with the owner stalled. At the board’s direction, staff reopened the process in March to re-evaluate sites in-county and to re-examine alternative disposal technologies.

Horse Ridge and next steps

- Horse Ridge area: Brownell said three disturbed parcels (previous aggregate or surface-mining sites) adjacent to county property on the east side of the Badlands are now being evaluated together; parcel owners have expressed interest in selling. The site had been ruled out earlier because of eagle overlays and other wildlife concerns but updated state wildlife mapping pushed those overlays back, bringing the parcels back into…