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Spokane Valley unveils draft solid waste management plan; public hearing set for Sept. 30
Summary
City staff introduced a draft update to Spokane Valley’s Solid Waste Management Plan on Sept. 2 and set a public hearing for Sept. 30 to gather community feedback before submitting the plan to the Washington Department of Ecology for review.
City staff introduced an updated Solid Waste Management Plan to the Spokane Valley City Council on Sept. 2, describing a multi‑step review and public engagement process that includes a public hearing scheduled for Sept. 30.
Deputy City Manager Eric Lamb said Washington law requires municipalities that manage their own solid waste programs to adopt a local solid waste management plan. The draft combines the city’s previous solid waste plan and its required household hazardous waste plan into a single document and addresses collection, disposal, recycling, organics, small‑quantity hazardous waste, estimated long‑range needs, mitigation of improper handling and a contamination‑reduction outreach plan.
Lamb and Public Works Director Robert Blagan said the city engaged a consultant and a technical advisory committee (TAC) that included city staff, the consultant, Spokane County, contract service providers and a representative from Ecology; Ecology must approve the final plan. The TAC reviewed existing conditions and implementation strategies and will help draft the document that staff will post for public review ahead of the Sept. 30 public hearing.
Council member concerns Council Member Merkel asked why members of the public were not on the TAC; staff replied the TAC was intended as a technical committee to work with the consultant and that public input is sought through the public posting and the Sept. 30 hearing. Merkel also asked for clearer cost and timing analyses for organics program expansion and said he wanted reliability standards such as on‑time pickup included in planning documents rather than leaving them solely to contracts. Staff responded that specific contract standards are implemented through procurement but that council can direct inclusion of standards in the plan if it desires.
Next steps Staff said they will incorporate council and public comments, return with an updated draft later in the fall and submit the plan to Ecology for a roughly 90‑day review period expected to run into January 2026. If Ecology requests substantive changes, staff said the plan could return to council for additional review before a final adoption in spring 2026.
Ending: Staff asked council to review the posted draft and submit written comments before the Sept. 30 public hearing; no action or vote was required at the Sept. 2 meeting.
