Solid Waste seeks new scale office, equipment and an administrative position to improve billing and operations

Solid Waste Director Wayne Anderton asked the commissioners to approve a new scale office and two inbound/outbound scales (a project estimated at $1.3 million) and to fund an additional administrative position focused on billing, audits and customer service.

Anderton said the new scale configuration and automated office would allow the landfill to bill by tonnage rather than by yardage (a change the director's office said would improve comparability with other regional operators), improve accuracy by forcing vehicles to register inbound and outbound loads, and create an opportunity to capture prohibited items at the scale rather than after unloading. He said the department had applied for a SWIFfR grant but recommended the county budget the project in the event the federal grant is delayed or not awarded.

The director also requested funding to purchase a new front-end loader and a man lift, replace and asphalt a gate/entrance area, and install fencing at the IbaUpa site to meet DEQ expectations. Anderton said a new administrative employee would help audit can assignments, manage billing follow-up for delinquent accounts, and support a new scale office's daily operations.

Anderton noted some carryover items from capital purchases already under way (building purchase deposit and water-infrastructure work) and emphasized the need to proceed soon because construction costs may rise and some equipment has reached the end of its service life.