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Atchison County commissioners identify properties for KDHE illegal-dump assistance, seek owner outreach before signing
Summary
Commissioners discussed a KDHE program that can provide up to $10,000 per property for solid-waste cleanups, agreed to forward identified sites to KDHE for owner outreach, and requested departmental coordination and clarification of financial and consent steps before authorizing the state to proceed.
Atchison County commissioners agreed to forward several nuisance-property addresses to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s (KDHE) illegal-dump program and asked KDHE staff to contact property owners before the county signs any paperwork.
Commissioner K. (chair) summarized KDHE’s program, saying, “Toby **** was here last week, and explained to us the KDHE, illegal dump program that can provide property owners up to $10,000 of assistance. 7,500 of that goes through KDHE, with a 25% match from the county that can be in, in kind services.”
The county’s discussion focused on process and limits: commissioners asked that KDHE confirm owner willingness and means-testing before the county completes any formal sign-off, and they requested that the county solid-waste department and other relevant staff be involved in scheduling and in-kind-match planning.
Why it matters: the program can reduce the county’s cleanup costs by shifting most of the direct expense to KDHE, but commissioners emphasized the need for front-end coordination so property owners understand what KDHE will and will not remove and to avoid the county inadvertently triggering state action before owners have been consulted.
Details and next steps: commissioners identified two properties the board toured that appear to qualify and that have cooperative owners (referred in the meeting transcript as “20 411 Pacific” and “6455 Rollins,” verbatim from the record). Commissioners asked staff to "star" those addresses, prepare the KDHE request forms, and to seek a third candidate if one of the two does not qualify. They also asked that KDHE (represented in the discussion by “Toby”) contact property owners to gauge willingness and complete means-testing before the county executes any resolution or funding commitment.
County staff flagged administrative issues commissioners wanted clarified before formal sign-off: whether the county’s solid-waste (sales-tax-funded) budget can temporarily absorb upfront costs pending KDHE reimbursement; how KDHE documents the county’s 25% match (in-kind versus cash); and how KDHE determines eligibility and enforces cleanup if owners later refuse to cooperate. Commissioners directed staff to invite the solid-waste department head to the next conversation so operational impacts can be anticipated.
Quotations and concerns: Commissioner Campbell said he wanted clarity on whether the sales-tax–funded solid-waste budget can be used to cover interim costs until KDHE reimburses the county. Another commissioner cautioned that once the county lists a property and signs the appropriate form, KDHE may proceed with cleanup even if the property owner later objects, so the board wants KDHE to perform owner outreach first.
Outcome: commissioners reached consensus (no formal roll-call vote recorded) to prepare KDHE request forms for the identified addresses, ask KDHE to contact property owners before any county sign-off, and bring the solid-waste department into planning. Staff will email KDHE contact Toby to confirm the next steps and follow up at the next meeting.
Ending: Commissioners asked that the county clerk or designated staff send KDHE the draft list and that staff report back after KDHE’s initial owner contacts so the board can approve any formal county resolution only after owner outreach and departmental coordination.
