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Pike County fiscal court opens formal review of landfill options after social‑media controversy
Summary
At a special Feb. 13 meeting, Pike County’s fiscal court detailed three options for handling a rapidly filling county landfill — expand the existing site (estimated $18M), close and haul waste out (~$6M closure cost plus hauling) or allow a private company to seek permits for a new landfill on a former mine site — and stressed the host agreement voted earlier was only for exploration and permitting, not construction.
Judge Jones opened a special meeting of the Pike County Fiscal Court on Feb. 13 to address persistent social‑media claims about a proposed landfill and to explain options for the county’s rapidly diminishing landfill capacity.
Jones told the assembled residents that the court had not authorized construction at Myra and that recent votes were limited to soliciting proposals and allowing a private company to pursue permitting steps. “You’ve been lied to,” Jones said, describing posts he said misrepresented the court’s actions. He emphasized the court had voted in open session only to solicit requests for proposals and to accept a single returned proposal and a related host agreement — steps Jones characterized as preliminary and required to permit further study.
Why it matters: Pike County’s landfill, opened in 1993, has accepted waste for about 34 years and faces shrinking airspace. County officials said emergency state funding and short‑term measures will buy about six‑to‑seven years of capacity, after which a successor fiscal court will face costly choices that could affect garbage rates and county finances.
Jones reviewed three paths the court is weighing: expand the existing landfill on the current site (most recent county estimate: about $18 million), close the current site and haul county waste to another facility (closure…
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