Inyo County adopts high-wind operations and temporary-closure policy for landfills

The Inyo County Board of Supervisors adopted a new high-wind operations and temporary-closure policy for county landfills at its March 17, 2026 meeting.

The policy establishes four wind-condition levels — a normal baseline, an elevated condition, a restricted operations level and full closure — and directs staff to use installed wind-monitoring stations at county landfills to trigger notifications and operational responses. Staff said the measure responds to enforcement concerns raised by CalRecycle and the county’s environmental health division about recurring wind‑blown trash at sites including Lone Pine and Bishop.

"This is based on generally accepted wind criteria … we've identified four different wind levels," said Richard Shore, compliance project manager with the county’s Solid Waste/Public Works team, explaining that the county will notify franchise haulers by text, email and phone when levels change and is exploring containerized drop‑off options to keep lightweight items from becoming airborne.

Supervisor Waddleton spoke in favor of the policy and noted it could affect local contractors' schedules, saying the measure aims to reduce the demoralizing work of repeatedly cleaning wind-blown trash at the Lone Pine site. After discussion and no public comment, the Board approved the item on a motion; the chair declared the motion carried.

Staff said the policy will be implemented across the county’s landfills, with staff recording wind data and alerting haulers where possible. County staff cautioned that reaching the most restrictive levels will be infrequent but necessary to satisfy enforcement and public‑health concerns. The item does not create new fees; it sets operational thresholds and communication procedures. Next steps include formalizing signage at sites and staff training on the new monitoring and notification protocols.