MADISON COUNTY — Madison County is in the process of planning for the long-term future of its solid waste management system.

Located on Buyea Road in Canastota, the county landfill site includes the main office, scalehouse, and ARC Recycling Center for haulers.

The Madison County Solid Waste Department also oversees four transfer stations — Buyea Road, Cazenovia, Hamilton, and Sullivan — where residents can dispose of their household garbage and recycling if they do not use a private hauler.

According to the county, the solid waste department does not receive revenue from taxes; instead, it is run as an enterprise fund and funded by user waste disposal fees that must be sufficient to support the entirety of the solid waste management system, including landfill operations, recycling, transfer stations, special programs, capital expenses, and future liabilities.

In 2021, the Madison County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution to hire Cornerstone Engineering and Geology, PLLC to conduct a study of the long-term sustainability of the current Madison County landfill operations.

According to a new webpage focused on the long-term planning for the solid waste department, the county is concerned about the financial viability of the current operations because it does not want ever-increasing disposal fees to financially burden the community.

The county said its main challenge is the small scale of its operations and its inability to achieve sufficient economies of scale.

Although the Madison County Landfill has many years of remaining life in terms of capacity, the facility is among the smallest operating landfills in New York State. Despite its size, it is subject to the same regulations as much larger landfills and the equipment needs are similar. The same is true for the transfer stations and material recovery facility, which processes recyclables.

“In other words, the amount of waste that is generated within Madison County is not enough to financially sustain operations without increasing costs significantly to residents and businesses,” the county said on the “Long Term Planning” webpage. “Changes, whatever those may be, need to be considered.”

The county explained that the costs of operating the solid waste system have increased substantially in recent years, and additional costs are anticipated in the next five years due to New York State’s regulatory trajectory.

The board of supervisors tasked Cornerstone with first assessing the current system and then evaluating alternatives that may improve the long-term financial sustainability of the solid waste department.

On Sept. 22, 2022, the engineering firm presented the county’s solid waste committee with an initial assessment and several options for changes to the system.

According to the county, Cornerstone’s draft report indicated that the current waste disposal fees are not sufficiently covering the costs of operations, capital expenses, and the long-term management of the landfill. If changes are not made to the system, waste disposal fees will need to increase to fully fund the program’s annual costs as well as the future responsibilities of landfill closure and post-closure monitoring.

The draft study evaluated three options for the future. The first is to maintain the status quo with the implementation of some efficiency measures, such as closing some of the transfer stations and beginning to charge a fee for recyclables. The second option is to explore a public-private partnership where Madison County continues to own the landfill and partners with a private landfill operator. The third option involves closing the landfill and constructing a transfer station to send waste elsewhere.

The meeting minutes from when Cornerstone presented the results of its draft study are available at madisoncounty.ny.gov. The final report of the study is expected to be available in early January 2023.

“The option to close the landfill was ruled out, as it does not achieve the ultimate goal of long-term financial stability and sustainability,” the county reported on its website. “While the status quo option offered some opportunities for cost reductions, it would require the closure of transfer stations and changes to the recycling system. Ultimately, the board of supervisors [has] determined that the public-private partnership option seems to provide the best opportunity to achieve the long-term goal of financial stability and sustainability.”

To continue evaluating the public-private partnership option, the county plans to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for the operation and maintenance of the Madison County Landfill with the aim of gathering information about potential opportunities and the associated risks and benefits. The RFP is set to go out in the first quarter of 2023.

According to Cazenovia Town Supervisor Bill Zupan, the county is exploring every possibility for the landfill, with options ranging from keeping it county-owned to having a private/county partnership to going completely private.

“It’s an ongoing process, and I feel that if we go out for proposals, then we can make an informed decision,” said Zupan.

The county said that decisions will also need to be made regarding the future of its transfer stations, which are a financial burden to the program. Cornerstone’s draft study showed that the transfer stations are not covering their operational costs alone and are being subsidized by landfill disposal fees.

Therefore, the county explained, consideration must be given to how the transfer station program can continue without significantly raising punch card and/or landfill disposal fees.

According to Amy Miller, director of Madison County Solid Waste, a public-private partnership may afford additional opportunities to keep the transfer stations open; however, no decisions have been made regarding the stations at this time.

“It will depend on the proposals received from the RFP process,” Miller said.

For the calendar year 2023, the county does not anticipate changes to the current solid waste management system.

For more information on Madison County’s long-term strategic planning for its solid waste management system, visit madisoncounty.ny.gov/2938/Long-Term-Planning. As additional information becomes available, it will be added to the page. The county is also planning community outreach meetings for the first half of 2023.