Ada County amends household hazardous waste contract; program cost about $1.4 million a year
Loading...
Summary
The board approved an amendment to the Clean Earth Environmental contract for the household hazardous waste facility, which staff said costs about $1.4 million annually and is currently subsidized by landfill tipping fees; staff added items such as medium-sized lithium batteries, solar panels and vapes to the accepted commodity list and warned rising volumes could increase costs.
The Ada County Board of Commissioners approved an amendment to agreement 30190-4-26 with Clean Earth Environmental for the county’s household hazardous waste (HHW) facility.
Herb Cantu, the landfill representative, said the HHW program collects household hazardous materials from the public and from mobile collection events hosted by cities, and that the program is offered to the community at no charge. The program is funded through the landfill gate (tipping) fee, which subsidizes processing and disposal costs.
Cantu told the board the county pays about $1,400,000 a year under the contract, and that tonnages have increased (staff cited an increase of roughly 100,000 pounds per year over recent fiscal years). The contract amendment incorporates additional materials such as medium‑sized lithium batteries; staff noted solar panels and vaping devices have been added in recent years.
County staff warned that if deliveries from a major hauler remain reduced (a recent decline was noted), the program subsidy could be affected. Staff said options to address any shortfall include charging users for HHW drop‑offs or billing cities for mobile event materials. Commissioners approved the agreements package, including the Clean Earth amendment, and authorized the chair to sign.
