Cumberland County awards $5.46 million contract to build solid-waste transfer station

Cumberland County commissioners voted Aug. 11 to award a construction contract to O'Connor Company for a new solid-waste transfer station, approving a total contract amount of $5,463,344 that included the base bid and two alternates (pit scales and a fire main).

Amanda Lee presented the contract, explaining the bid components: a base bid for the transfer station itself and alternates for pit scales (Alternate 1) and a fire main (Alternate 2). Lee said the county has less than six years of landfill capacity remaining at its Anne Street facility and estimates current closure at 2031 at present fill rates. The transfer station is permitted by the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and is intended to be a concrete-floor receiving facility where collector trucks deposit waste, which will then be loaded into tractor-trailers for transport to regional landfills — currently Sampson County landfill is cited as a near-term destination for disposal.

Lee told commissioners the county has been transferring waste already and that the transfer station will provide a more controlled operation (concrete receiving pad, heavy equipment to move material to trailers) than current in-place tipping.

Commissioner Faircloth asked for a plain-language description of a transfer station; Lee explained its function and how it extends landfill life by consolidating loads into tractor-trailers for transport. Commissioner Tyson moved to approve the contract and authorize the chairman to execute it; the motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

The county will proceed with contract execution and the construction schedule as set out in the contract documents.