LUBA To Issue Decision July 1

The Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) has signaled that it will release its decision regarding Riverbend Landfill by Friday, July 1.  LUBA could uphold Yamhill County's approval of the dump's expansion plan, reverse that approval (killing expansion), or remand to the County for yet another hearing.

At issue is whether the proposed expansion will significantly impact costs or practices on neighboring farms.  State law prohibits certain non-farm activities, like landfills, on farmland unless potentially adverse impacts are mitigated so that they don't adversely affect farm activities.

Farmers near the landfill have identified several impacts they say adversely affect their farming in significant ways.  Chief among these are huge flocks of birds, primarily seagulls and starlings, that come to the dump to feed and then continue on to adjacent fields.

Waste Management (WM), Riverbend's Texas-based owner, agrees that the landfill attracts large numbers of birds.  Farmers might not object if the birds remained at the dump, but the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) requires WM to keep birds away from the waste, in part to protect the South Yamhill River from contamination by bird feces.  When WM moves birds off the dump, they go next door, to prime farmland.

In recent years, WM has relied on falcons to scare the birds.  In theory, falcon harassment should convince seagulls to find other food sources, and WM's falconer insists that overall, the number of birds visiting the dump has declined since the falcon program began.

However, the falconer concedes that up to 1,000 birds a day continue to visit the landfill neighborhood during crucial winter weeks when the young grass first appears.  Nevertheless, the only mitigation WM offered to reduce the impact of birds on nearby farms is to increase falcon activity.  WM's own evidence at the most recent expansion hearing emphasized that there are no proven ways to keep birds away from landfills.  Paul Burns, a senior WM official who oversees Riverbend operations, has rejected a return to canons, saying they did not work well when Riverbend tried them in the past.

Litter is another key issue.  Several farmers submitted examples of grain fields near the dump that had been contaminated with plastic waste.  Grain harvested with plastic strips wrapped in the bales cannot be sold, and the plastic may foul harvesting equipment, resulting in costly repairs and lost production time.  Yet removing the waste is a time-consuming, hands-on process.

While not conceding that litter impacts are significant, WM proposed mitigation for one farmer only, offering to patrol his fields for plastic waste.

If LUBA finds that birds, litter, or other impacts are real and significant and the proposed mitigation is inadequate, then LUBA may reverse the County's approval of the expansion.  Or LUBA could remand the case back to the County for yet another hearing, which could be focused on either the actual significance of impacts or the adequacy of proposed mitigation.  If LUBA finds that the impacts are not significant, or that the offered mitigation is adequate, then it could uphold expansion.

Any of these decisions could be appealed to the state Court of Appeals.

The Death of Mulkeys

For years Waste Management (WM), Texas-based corporate owner of Riverbend Landfill, has been telling Yamhill County that it will evict Mulkeys RV Park and its tenants as part of its commitment to expand the landfill.  Mulkeys, located on land WM owns adjacent to Riverbend, is supposed to be a transient RV stop but has instead been home for years to people with mobile homes but no land of their own.

Mulkeys has, in fact, been one of Yamhill County's most successful affordable housing projects, providing permanent, inexpensive housing for individuals and families alike.

Nevertheless, WM's master plan for the dump includes putting equipment for construction and operations on the site where Mulkeys sits.  That master plan, of course, is currently in the hands of the courts and may be there a good long while.  A decision by the state Land Use Board of Appeals is expected on June 24, but observers widely believe that the losing side will appeal to the Court of Appeals.  That will mean WM will have to wait several more months before it will know whether it can or cannot expand--or whether the County must once again consider the matter.

But even with all this uncertainty, last month WM finally made good on its promise to kick Mulkeys out.  Long-term residents were stunned.  The timing couldn't be worse, they said.  Even if they could afford to move, local RV parks are already filling up fast for summer.  And it's not certain that residents could remain even if WM rescinded its eviction notice, a move called for by the Yamhill Valley News-Register:  According to that paper, Jackie Lane, Mulkeys' manager, was one of the first to depart.

WM's cold-heartedness should not come as a surprise to the County or its Board of Commissioners.  County resident Marilyn Walster told the Board to expect this move, and the harsh consequences to Mulkeys' residents, back in December 2014, just before the County voted to approve a dump expansion that would throw seventy families out of their homes.  Her December 21, 2014, letter follows:

Dear Planning Commissioners and Staff:

I am writing to ask that Yamhill County Planning Commission deny Waste Management’s application for expansion. 

This letter addresses the issue of Mulkey’s RV Park, sited west of the dump, and the displacement of the people who call it home. 

Riverbend’s expansion application makes no mention of the fact that there are real people, with real families, and real children who live permanently at Mulkey’s RV Park.  This is not just a place for “overnighters” to park their recreational vehicles.

Mulkey’s RV Park has 85 sites available for RV hook-ups.  Seventy of those sites are held for long-term residents.  Mulkey’s accepts trailers, 5^th wheels and park models (a more permanent dwelling not easily moved). Mulkey’s RV Park is home to many Yamhill County families.  Lots of little kids stand out in front of Mulkey’s to catch the bus on school days.  Yet Riverbend’s expansion application does not address the displacement of these families in any way.  In fact, the Farm Impacts Analysis part of the expansion application refers to Mulkey’s as a “former RV park”, as if these families do not exist.

Mulkey’s major customer base is permanent residents, not recreational overnighters. Residents enhance and personalize their spaces with flower planters and yard décor. In some cases, metal awnings have been erected for additional protection of homes.

The management requires a background check on long-term applicants.  They complete an extensive application, and if accepted, there is a 90 day probationary period.  Terms of rental are carefully spelled out for the safety and well-being of all residents, including the limiting of guests to 14 days per year at no additional charge.  The monthly space rental is $350 plus electricity.  It is rare to have such affordable housing with the features of Mulkey RV Park for county residents.

The Riverbend Landfill expansion application does not address the destruction of 70 sites that provide affordable long-term housing for Yamhill County families. Many of the residents do not have the financial means to move their units, especially the park models, even if they could find other affordable space. Waste Management’s application ignores these devastating impacts. The ramifications of closing Mulkey RV Park need to be considered in this decision.  Yamhill County needs safe, affordable places for low-income families to live.

Riverbend likes to talk about how they contribute to the economy with 15-20 full time jobs provided to people who live in Hillsboro, West Linn, Portland, and Vancouver. (Very few Riverbend employees actually live in Yamhill County)  There’s another side to this economic coin that they refuse to talk about: the creation of more homeless families here in Yamhill County because of the closure of Mulkey’s.

I sincerely hope the Planning Commission will deny the Riverbend Landfill expansion.  However, if you believe it is in the county’s best interest to approve the application, please require that Waste Management recognize the existence of Mulkey’s residents by assisting them (financially if need be) in their search for permanent affordable housing.

Sincerely,

Marilyn Walster

Garbage Rates Go Up Again - Dump Not To Blame!

In case you missed it, the Yamhill County Board of Commissioners approved yet another hike in garbage hauling rates late last month.  For years, Waste Management (WM), owner of Riverbend Landfill, has predicted that closing the dump would lead to increases in garbage pick-up rates across the County.

However, hauling rates have risen steadily over the past several years despite the fact that the dump remains open.  Rates in 2008 when WM first applied to expand the dump ranged from $11.83/can in rural areas to $17.03/can within city limits.  With the new increases, rates will now top off at more than $28/can.

Stop the Dump Coalition and others have long contended that WM's fear-mongering linking rate increases to Riverbend closure was a red herring.  Rates are driven by costs incurred by hauling companies, and are not directly tied to gate fees at any dump.  Currently, Recology, which serves McMinnville and the south County, has no contract with Riverbend and must pay the same gate fees as anybody else.

And rates must be approved by the County before they can be imposed.  This spring, some members of the County's Solid Waste Advisory Committee tried to convince that body to ask the Commissioners to put the hauling contracts out to bid.  The contracts, which are exclusive -- meaning no competition will be tolerated -- have never been put to bid.  Households in many other counties, including some without a local landfill, pay lower rates.

Rate Increase Details

Recology will get a 0.5% CPI (cost of living) increase.  This is expected to add 17¢ to the monthly bill of a household with a 90-gallon can, the largest regular can available.

WM, which picks up waste in Newberg and the north County, asked for and received an increase of 3.68% CPI, adding $1.00/month to households with a 64-gallon can.

The dump also increased its gate rates.  The minimum drop off fee for waste brought directly to the dump will now be $15.10.

Households can avoid increases by switching to smaller cans, reducing waste, and recycling more.

For more information, contact Sherrie Mathison at mathiss@co.yamhill.or.us.