One Meeting Changed, Another Coming Up

Landfill Expansion

The Board of Commissioners were supposed to sign off on findings to support their 2-1 decision favoring landfill expansion at the Board's regular meeting Thursday, April 16, but the findings aren't ready (ie, Waste Management hasn't finished writing them).  The Commissioners will instead consider the proposed findings at their April 23rd meeting.

Once the Commissioners approve the findings, they can adopt an ordinance approving expansion.  In the past, such ordinances have always been adopted as "emergency" measures, meaning citizens can't seek a voter referendum to repeal the ordinance.

Voters' only option when a bad emergency ordinance is adopted is to appeal.  Because the landfill measure is a land use issue, any appeal would be to the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA).  Notice of intent to appeal to LUBA must be filed within 21 days after the ordinance becomes effective (May 14, if an immediately-effective emergency ordinance is approved on April 23). 

Landfill Air Quality Permit Renewal

In the meantime, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has scheduled a hearing on Waste Management's request to renew the landfill's Air Quality permit.  That hearing will be held Thursday, April 30, in the Carnegie Room at the McMinnville Public Library, 225 NW Adams Street in McMinnville.  The hearing begins with an informational session at 6:00 PM followed by the hearing itself at 7:00 PM.


You do not have to attend the hearing in order to comment on the proposed permit. DEQ will accept comments by email, mail, or fax as well as testimony at the hearing.  The proposed permit itself can be found at http://www.oregon.gov/deq/docs/043015riverbend.pdf. 

To compare with the existing permit, go to http://www.deq.state.or.us/aq/permit/alphalist.htm#qr and scroll down to Riverbend Landfill.  Or contact Patty Hamman of DEQ at the address below for information.

 

Send written comments by mail, fax, or email to:

 

Patty Hamman, Permit Coordinator
DEQ Western Region, Salem Office
4026 Fairview Industrial Drive
Salem, OR 97302
Fax:        (503)378-4196
Email:    hamman.patricia@deq.state.or.us

To consider comments, DEQ must receive them by 5:00 PM, Friday, May 8, 2015.

Commissioners To Finalize Expansion Ordinance April 16

The Yamhill County Board of Commissioners (BOC) will meet Thursday, April 16, to adopt findings in support of its decision to allow Riverbend Landfill to expand.

Despite misgivings about the landfill's impacts on neighborhood farming activities, the BOC voted 2-1 last week to approve an expansion that will keep the landfill open another dozen or so years.  Without the approval, the dump would reach capacity and close sometime in 2017.

Commissioner Allen Springer, whose close ties to Waste Management caused many to question his impartiality, cast the lone vote against expansion.  (Waste Management operates the dump through wholly-owned subsidiary Riverbend Landfill Co.)  Springer offered no explanation or support for his vote.

The Stop the Dump Coalition and other County organizations are already discussing a possible appeal.  Over the years, hundreds of County residents and businesses have called for the County to let the dump close.  They cite Waste Management's importation of millions of tons of waste from outside the County as well as the dump's close proximity to the South Yamhill River and acres of fertile farmland as strong reasons to see the landfill close.

Though some have expressed concern over a possible rise in garbage rates if the local landfill closes, expansion opponents point out that (1) the County has never put garbage hauling out to bid and so there is no way to know what the real cost should be, and (2) garbage rates have gone up anyway even though the dump is still open.  A survey of neighboring counties showed that even some without local garbage dumps offer lower rates to customers.

Ex parte contact rules prohibit people, for or against expansion, from contacting the Commissioners before the findings are adopted and the ordinance approving expansion is approved.  To see the BOC in action once again, attend the meeting, Thursday, April 16, 2015, at 10:00 AM in room 32 of the County Courthouse (in the basement) on 5th Street between Evans and Ford in McMinnville.

Commissioners Approve Expansion 2-1

Friends,

Yesterday the Yamhill County Commissioners voted to approve the expansion of the dump.  The vote was 2-1, but the big surprise was that the no vote came from Allen Springer, who gave no reason for his vote, and did it in such a way that many didn't realize he had actually voted in opposition.  Let's hope news organizations press him for his reasons to vote no....

Mike Brandt made clear in his staff report that ORS 215.296 was a reason to deny the application.  This ORS prohibits non-farm practices (like a dump) on farm land if there is a negative impact on farmers. Commissioner Starrett seemed to understand that farmers were being seriously impacted. Then she argued against herself that the impacts were not a legal reason to vote no; she appeared not to realize that the legal threshold for ORS 215.296 had certainly been met and that was all the legal reason she needed.  As many of you know, she is very concerned about the impacts on farmers' lives from a bike trail. Those impacts pale in comparison to the impacts of 15 million tons (and growing) of putrescible waste bordering peoples' farms.  Commissioner Primozich gave no reason for his vote.

In addition to ORS 215.296, Mike Brandt told the commissioners that OAR 660 was also a legal reason to deny the application. They appeared not to want to wander into more complex laws, so avoided all mention of it.   We were very impressed by the Planning Department's thorough report.  We are, of course, disappointed that two of the commissioners did not pay attention to the legal reasons to deny the application.

The Commissioners heaped blame on previous commissioners, thereby justifying continuing the same bad policies.Commissioner Starrett acknowledged that the dump is in a "lousy location" but  that was not their doing. Voting to expand in that same lousy location makes no sense.

There are hundreds of pages of expert testimony that provide strong legal arguments to deny Waste Management's  application.  All that is needed is the political will to take the county in a new direction.  We did not see that political will today.

Thank you for the huge turnout.  We'll keep you posted on further plans.

- Stop the Dump Coalition

Commissioners To Try Again

The Yamhill County Board of Commissioners will try again tomorrow, Thursday, April 2, to reach a decision on whether to allow Riverbend Landfill to expand.

A decision was originally expected a week ago, but questions about the propriety of ex parte contacts with individual Commissioners sidetracked that process.  Those questions focused on Chair Allen Springer's extensive contacts with Waste Management employees on matters tangential to the landfill and Commissioner Stan Primozich's conversation with an appraisor whose opinions on the devaluing impact of the landfill on the price of adjacent lands had already been entered into the record.

Whether the Commissioners' earlier unnoticed visits to the landfill itself (singly, but with some participation by WM personnel) violated County rules has also been raised.

In addition, the News-Register newspaper has been trying to obtain copies of correspondence between Commissioners and County Counsel about ex parte contact law.  The paper wants to learn whether that legal advice has been consistent and whether Commissioners have been following it.

Last week the Board decided to give all parties an opportunity to "rebut" "charges" of improper contact.  Expansion opponents have questioned whether that is the proper way to cure problems they believe are interwoven into the entire expansion decision process.

The Board hearing is scheduled for 10:00 AM in Room 32, basement of the Courthouse, 5th and Evans in McMinnville.  Last week, Chair Springer felt it necessary to ask the Sheriff's office to deploy deputies to monitor the meeting room.  Perhaps he fears an ex parte outbreak.

Last Chance to Weigh in on Riverbend

The Board of Commissioners heard impassioned pleas from both sides last Thursday during the hearing on the proposed Riverbend Landfill expansion.  The 29-acre expansion would bring the landfill right up to the edge of Highway 18 (only 50 feet from road's edge) and keep the landfill open another decade.

Several Riverbend contractors and employees asked the BOC to keep the landfill operating.  A host of expansion opponents cited impacts to neighboring farms, ground and river water, air quality, and tourist businesses as reasons to let the landfill close.

The BOC is following a procedure that requires them to deny Riverbend's expansion application if the expansion would require significant changes in farming practices or increases in costs.  The Commissioners had been asked to follow a different procedure, applicable to enlargement of nonconforming uses, which would have required the County to deny expansion if the proposal would add any negative impacts.  The BOC declined to use that procedure.

The hearing record is being held open for additional comment only until 5:00 PM this coming Tuesday evening, March 17.  After that, anyone may rebut new comments up until 5:00 PM Friday, March 20.  Then the record is closed.

Comments should be sent to Planning Director Mike Brandt at brandtm@co.yamhill.or.us or mailed to the Planning Department at 525 NE 4th Street, McMinnville, Oregon 97128.

The BOC will decide whether Riverbend can expand March 26 at 10:00 AM in Room 32 in the basement of the County Courthouse, 535 NE 5th Street in McMinnville.