Riverbend Appeals Expansion Denial

Riverbend Landfill has filed a timely notice of appeal with the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA).  The appeal challenges Yamhill County's denial of the landfill's expansion request.

That request, originally filed in 2014, would allow the dump to add some 29 acres and move far closer to Highway 18.  The expansion application also enabled Riverbend to dismantle a fully-occupied mobile home park and would require the company to -- eventually -- establish an "alternative" waste processing plant at the dump site.

In rejecting the request, the County Board of Commissioners found that a landfill was no longer required nor sustainable at the present site (between a major tourist highway and a river that is a drinking-water source for several communities) and also that Riverbend could not prevent litter from contaminating neighboring fields.

The notice of appeal starts a legally-mandated clock.  The County must first prepare a "record" of the case (i.e., gather all the paperwork) to ship to LUBA.  Then Riverbend must submit its initial written argument (by October 11 or thereabouts).  The County then has 21 days to respond, and Riverbend gets 21 more days to rebut the County's counter arguments.

Riverbend can be expected to argue that its untested plan for containing litter is effective and sufficient and that the County's other grounds for rejecting its application went beyond the scope of the proceeding.

The County's arguments will likely be prepared by expansion opponents, including Stop the Dump Coalition, Friends of Yamhill County, and McPhillips Farms (the farm most affected by litter), all of which have previously filed legal briefs opposing expansion.

In the meantime, visitors to the dump report that Riverbend is no longer requiring loads to be tarped (a County legal requirement) or supervising dumping of small waste loads.  This can result in mixing of recyclables and dump waste, turning otherwise recyclable materials into dirty trash.

To learn more, contact info@stopthedumpcoalition.org.