Custer County approves $40,000 from contingency to help Round Mountain remove lagoon sludge

The Custer County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on April 3 to approve Resolution 25‑25, authorizing a $40,000 appropriation from the county contingency (LATCF) fund to Round Mountain Water and Sanitation District to offset sludge disposal costs.

County officials said the appropriation is intended to allow the district to sign a contract and begin immediate removal of accumulated biosolids from treatment lagoons that district staff described as an operational crisis.

At the meeting David Niquette, representing Round Mountain Water and Sanitation District, described the bidding and contracting process with a contractor identified as Denali. "The original contract price was $238,000," Niquette said, citing a breakdown he provided: $4,000 for testing, $5,000 for mobilization and $229,000 for sludge removal. He said the district had added a $62,000 contingency and initially estimated a $300,000 project total. After asking Denali to provide a price to haul material out of county, Niquette said Denali proposed additional costs that he characterized as $98,600 in extra charges and a removal figure discussed in the meeting as $327,600 for out‑of‑county disposal; he presented the updated…