Blaine council approves Walters transfer‑station expansion with new odor‑control requirements

The Blaine City Council on Wednesday approved an amended conditional‑use permit (CUP) allowing Walters Recycling & Refuse to increase annual throughput at its Zylight Street transfer station to 230,000 tons, provided the company implements a package of odor‑mitigation, monitoring and reporting requirements.

The decision followed nearly three hours of public comment and a lengthy council discussion that centered on recurring neighborhood odor complaints, the reliability of proposed monitoring methods and the limited role of local enforcement while state odor rules are still being finalized.

City planner Sheila Selman told the council Walters currently operates under a CUP limiting annual capacity to 140,000 tons and said the company’s amended request—originally 340,000 tons at the planning commission—was reduced to 230,000 tons. Selman summarized the applicant’s proposal to use a “green bag” approach and robotic sorting to separate organics and described proposed physical and operational controls, including roof‑mounted updraft fans and third‑party monitoring. She told the council the planning commission had recommended denial of a larger expansion at its October hearing.

Residents who live near the facility urged the council to reject the expansion. Mark Rohrer, who lives on Zylight Street, criticized the proposed reliance on the Nasal Ranger and described his visit to a Walters facility in Newport: “The Nasal Ranger only affects how much air you inhale. It takes 0 actual measurements. The only measurement is the user's nose, and it is highly subjective.”…