Shawnee County solid waste director flags recycling uncertainty, outlines repairs and contracts

Shawnee County commissioners received a March 31 update from Bill Sutton, director of Shawnee County Solid Waste, who said the department is entirely user-fee funded and faces uncertainty in recycling markets as it renegotiates major contracts.

Sutton told the Board of County Commissioners that "Shawnee County Solid Waste is 100% user fee funded, with no tax payer assistance," and described the department's three divisions: refuse, recycling and the household hazardous waste (HHW) program. He said the HHW site on Northeast 46th Street accepts electronic waste and up to five tires per resident per year and that those services are provided free to county residents.

The update matters because contract terms and commodity markets drive the department's costs and customer rates. Sutton said the county collected a little over $18.5 million in revenue in the prior year and is on track to exceed that figure this year. He said county refuse tonnage sent to Rolling Meadows Landfill has been rising year over year, while…