HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 10-11-1995 - Items 1 and 2 - Appendix 5 APPENDIX 5
MEMORANDUM
TO: Board of Aldermen
Chapel Hill Town Council
Orange County Board of Commissioners
FROM: Gayle Wilson, Director, Solid Waste Management
SUBJECT: Status of the Landfill Site Search
DATE: October 11, 1995
The Orange County Landfill Owner's Group, representing the three governments; who
together own the present landfill, initiated a public search for a new landfill by soliciting
applications and appointing a Landfill Search Committee in March 1990. This committee
of volunteers was to be an adjunct committee of the Landfill Owners Group. The Landfill
Search Committee originally consisted of 13 citizen members: one from each of the seven
townships, one appointed by each governing body and three at-large members selected by
the Landfill Owner's Group. The committee was selected to represent the County both
geographically and demographically.
From the final recommended site(s), it was envisioned that the Landfill Owners Group
would select one site and recommend its acquisition to the elected officials of the three
governing boards. The three governments of the Landfill Owner's Group would then
approve the site and pursue its acquisition, rezoning and permitting for a landfill.
Prior to the appointment of the Landfill Search Committee, Joyce Engineering, Inc. of
Greensboro, North Carolina, in conjunction with Bain Palmer & Associates, Inc. also of
Greensboro, were selected through a competitive process to serve as technical consultants
to the landfill search process. Joyce Engineering,working with the Landfill Owner's Group
staff, established the scope of the site search study based on a framework of monthly
Landfill Search Committee meetings and periodic public information meetings.
The Landfill Search Committee held its first meeting on April 26, 1990 and has held a total
of 29 meetings over a five-year period. All of these meetings were open to citizens and
announced in advance. Six of these meetings were public input meetings which were
announced with paid advertising and offered citizens an opportunity to ask questions,make
comments and offer additional information.
The Landfill Search Committee used a selection process that identified suitable landfill sites
within the County. The process moved from the general to the specific with each step
moving to more detailed research and analysis. The process was developed with input
from the consultants and citizens and consisted of the following general steps:
Establishment of screening criteria;
Screening of the entire county to identify suitable areas;
Ranking of the suitable areas for selection of candidate sites; and
Selection of a finalist site using site data and preliminary engineering designs
of the candidate sites.
The initial list of 16 sites was eventually narrowed to four candidate sites: OC-2, OC-9, OC-
11, and OC-17. The next step in the process was to gather site specific data on the four
candidate sites. This was done during the preliminary geotechnical investigation and the
preliminary engineering evaluation completed on each of the four sites.
Additionally, a request was made to the State of North Carolina Inter-Agency Task Force
to visit the four candidate sites. The final report issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force
noted "...That none of the four potential sites were excluded from further consideration,
though, overall, site OC-17 received the most favorable comments."
On February 24, 1995, our consultants issued the "Report of Preliminary Engineering
Evaluations"which presented their evaluation of regulatory and technical issues. Although
all sites were deemed to be technically suitable for a landfill,they recommended site OCA 7
as the preferred site.
After several meetings of the Landfill Search Committee in the spring of 1995, the Landfill
Search Committee voted to recommend site OC-1 7 and to remove the other three sites from
consideration. The Chairman of the Landfill Search Committee presented their
recommendation to the Landfill Owner's Group on June 15, 1995.
The Landfill Owner's Group decided to hold a formal Public Hearing prior to making a
decision on its recommendation. The Public Hearing was held on September 28, 1995.
The Landfill Owner's Group will discuss and possibly make its final recommendation at its
next scheduled meeting on October 19, 1995. This recommendation will be presented to
the governing boards of Orange County, Carrboro and Chapel Hill for final approval.
It should be noted that the Landfill Owner's Group also is evaluating alternatives to the
current Landfill Owner's Group structure and considering various methods of financing the
new landfill. it is likely that the new landfill would actually be acquired, financed and
operated by the new organization.