To the Editor:

The economic and population growth enjoyed by our county over the past several years has brought new opportunities and new challenges. One of those challenges is developing a longterm plan for our solid waste disposal.

I was one of several local officials who went to California a couple of weeks ago to inspect a composting facility operated by South San Francisco Scavenger Company and a landfill/recycling facility operated by Republic Services.

Seeing what kinds of new technologies and approaches are possible is both exciting and an eye opener.

Our visit out West comes on the heels of a similar visit to a composting operation in Sevierville last year, and a $250,000 consulting study about long-term solid waste disposal solutions.

To my mind, there are a number of options open to us, each requiring a different level of commitment from our residents and businesses, and each with a different price tag.

That's why I believe we need a lot of education and public debate about this issue before making a decision. At the same time, I think time is rapidly running out and we need to make a decision about our solid waste disposal future sooner rather than later.

As I have thought and studied about this issue, I've started to come to some preliminary conclusions about possible directions for our county. These are:

• Our best chance for success will come if we join together with the county and municipalities going into this together. That probably means the setting up of some sort of a countywide solid waste authority.

• We need to be self-sufficient when it comes to solid waste disposal. Our taxpayers probably can't afford the cost if we elect to ship everything out of the county for disposal.

• This should be a private operation rather than public. In other words, I don't think the county needs to be in the garbage business. We should leave that to private industry. At the same time, we should have some control over that private business in terms of enforcement and cost containment.

• Our solid waste plan should include recycling and composting, but we have to understand everything cannot be disposed that way. In the end, some things will need to go to a landfill. We also must address the county landfill and the ongoing challenges it presents.

• If we process our waste inside the county, we should consider a facility large enough to accept out-of-county waste and use that income to reduce the cost of waste disposal for our county residents.

• If we process our waste inside the county, the chosen operator will have to work with their neighbors to resolve issues like traffic, trash and smell.

Already, some groups have announced public meetings about this issue, and I hope more will be forthcoming. Every possible solution carries a cost and the task before us is to find the best solutions we can at a price we can afford.

I am looking forward to participating in those discussions, and to continue talking to my constituents, members of the business community and representatives from the solid waste industry.

Sincerely,
Commissioner Craig Harris
March 27, 2019