What is Waste Management's plan of action now that they have withdrawn their request to the county to bring in more waste?

The answer to that question remains unclear.

“We really need more time to investigate all our options,” said the company’s community relations manager, Terri Douglas. “The landfill is an asset to Waste Management as well as the county.”

Waste Management withdrew its request a few weeks after presenting it to the fiscal court on Oct. 27, asking the county to amend the host agreement between the two allowing for additional waste to be brought into the landfill over a five year period.

The current agreement allows Waste Management to bring in 1,150 tons of waste per year into the landfill located on Coopertown Road. Waste Management wanted to increase the tonnage citing negotiations with landfill property owners A.F. Anderson, Inc. had failed and the lease would be running out in June 2015. The waste company said they had planned to pack up and leave the landfill at the end of five years and wanted to fill it up before leaving.

The capacity of the landfill according to state guidelines is 3.3 million tons. By not amending the host agreement it would leave 1.6 million tons of capacity unused.

Waste Management offered the county $1.6 million to allow their request but withdrew soon after George E. Strickler Jr. attorney for A.F. Anderson, Inc. made an appearance at a following fiscal court meeting stating his clients wanted to negotiate.

The landfill has been in Logan County for over 20 years. There have been a few different operators over the years Waste Management being the latest and all have leased the land it occupies from the Anderson family.

Garland Anderson, one of the property owners, said he wondered if the request from Waste Management was prompted by wanting to fill up the landfill in less time to save more money they would have to pay the county.

The county receives a percentage of the landfills net profits each year. In 2007-08 the county received $203,500. This included monies obtained for hauler permits into the landfill.

If the landfill stayed open for 20 more years and the county received approximately the same amount it was generating annually from the landfill now, that number would come in at a little over $4 million. If they left in five years at the same calculations adding the $1.6 million offered in the request that would be a little over $2.6 million.