Jackson County committee approves $1 purchase to secure Dalton Road landfill for leachate treatment

Jackson County General Government Committee members voted unanimously to approve purchasing the remaining Dalton Road landfill parcel for $1 so the county can proceed with a planned on-site leachate treatment facility.

Administrator/Controller Mike Overton told the committee the county has paid more than $100,000 a year to haul leachate offsite and learned it did not own all of the closed landfill property. Overton said the state would not allow the county to build the treatment facility without either a lease or ownership and that acquiring the parcel would give the county “more options.” He said, “we'd rather be in charge of our destiny.”

Brad Burlinski, the county attorney handling the matter, attended the meeting to confirm legal research had been completed. Overton and Burlinski said ownership would not change the county’s liability but would remove a regulatory roadblock to constructing the treatment plant on site.

Commissioner Ploskin asked whether ownership would add new liabilities; Overton and Burlinski responded that the county already bears responsibilities tied to the landfill and ownership simply provides more operational flexibility rather than additional liability.

Commissioner Snell moved to approve the purchase; the motion was supported by Walls and passed unanimously.

The county will move forward with planning for the leachate treatment facility and follow any state permitting requirements before construction.

Ending: The committee did not set a construction schedule at the meeting; staff and counsel will continue permitting and project planning work and return with implementation steps as appropriate.