County may lose landfill partners

Municipalities in western Shawano County are considering opting out of their landfill deal with the county rather than pay extra fees for waste diverted to nearby Marathon County.

The prospective departure of several partners raises new questions for a struggling county landfill operation that already is losing more than $200,000 a year.

It also could create a legal conflict because of a longstanding contractual agreement among all the parties to support the landfill, which is owned by the county and operated by the city of Shawano.

Town of Seneca trustee Michael Trinko said he considers any contracts null and void already, and he does not believe the landfill principals can prevent towns and villages from walking away.

“Sure, they can send us a bill,” Trinko said. “I don’t know what else they can do.”

The landfill, located on the far east side of Shawano, once served as the primary dumping site for household and business trash collected countywide. After expanding to about 45 acres, the operation is expected to continue for perhaps another five years before reaching capacity.

But several western communities have discovered that they can save money by directing their trash trucks to a landfill located closer in Ringle, just across the Marathon County border.

As a result, the Shawano County landfill is losing revenue and last year posted a financial loss of $227,000.

To make up for the losses, the county earlier this year proposed that towns and villages pay $8 per ton to Shawano County whenever sending their waste out of the county. The county’s Solid Waste Management Board in June voted to start imposing the new fees effective Jan. 1.

Municipal officials opposed to the new fees are now taking steps to sever all ties with the county-owned landfill.

The town of Birnamwood has notified the county that the town is opting out of the landfill partnership, which town Chairman Peter Stewart said “makes no sense” for the town because the Marathon County landfill is cheaper already and Shawano County wants more money.

Stewart said county officials have done a poor job of explaining how the new $8-per-ton fee would be used to rescue the ailing landfill.

“We wanted to work together,” Stewart said. “But they didn’t want to work with us.”

County officials have said the 11 affected western towns and villages all signed long-term agreements to use the landfill, and that the county would accept the $8-per-ton payments going forward rather than seeking back payments for diverted waste over several years. The arrangement was presented as a cooperative solution that would keep the countywide partnership intact.

With some towns and villages now planning to opt out, Bob Jacobson, the county’s planning and development director, said he could not forecast how that would affect the already-strained financial performance of the landfill.

Jacobson also said that while the municipalities could break their contract with the county after giving a 12-month advance notice, the city has its own contract with each partner — and there is no opt-out clause, he said.

“That’s something that the city’s going to have to decide,” he said.

City officials could not be reached for comment.

Tigerton village trustee Holly Weatherwax said she feels a sense of loyalty to Shawano County as a landfill partner, and is undecided about whether to try opting out of the contract. But she worries about the village being asked to pay higher costs for its waste disposal.

“My concern is money,” she said, “and where we’re going to get it from.”

Birnamwood village President Michael Sprague, meanwhile, said he is leaning toward following others and sending the county a notice that the contract is ending.

Sprague said his community is getting better service from the Marathon County landfill, and he suspects that having fewer customers will help Shawano County by extending the life of its landfill. He is uncertain how the county will respond, including whether the village still will be expected to pay the new the $8-per-ton fee during the 12 months before the contract officially ends.

“If we opt out,” he said, “it’s back in the county’s court.”