Carson City landfill expects profit from taking Angora fire debris

Carson City anticipates it will make a profit on the cleanup from the 3,100 acre Angora fire, which destroyed more than 250 homes over several days in June.

Charred waste from the area has been delivered to the Carson City Sanitary Landfill for the past couple of weeks. City officials believe taking the extra waste ultimately will bring a six-figure gain to the landfill.

"Apparently, it's easier and faster to come here," said Ken Arnold, the city's public works operations manager.

The California Integrated Waste Management Board is the lead agency for debris removal from the fire site, with the work going to contractors. El Dorado County Environmental Management is coordinating the removal of hazardous materials.

The closest garbage dump to the fire area is a transfer station in South Lake Tahoe that is considered too small to take the truckloads of debris coming out of the burned area. Other locations, such as Lockwood Regional Landfill in Storey County or even sites to the west such as in Sacramento, were deemed either too expensive, too far away or a combination of the two.

Among considerations are "logistical issues, as well as capacity and cost," said Jon Myers, a spokesman for the California Integrated Waste Management Board, about why Carson was chosen.

For out-of-county customers, Carson City's landfill charges between $25 to $40 a ton for these types of loads. The landfill won't take asbestos from customers outside the county and won't accept most other hazardous products.

Harmful things are being removed at the fire site, such as pesticides, aerosol spray cans and paint containers, Myers said.

"Dust has been the biggest concern," he said.

The cleanup is expected to be complete before the end of the summer. The goal is to remove anything harmful because once rain or snow begins to fall any remaining material could make its way to Angora Creek and eventually flow into Lake Tahoe, Myers said.

Workers at the landfill are inspecting trucks as they arrive and if any hazardous material is spotted the load is turned away, Arnold said.

Any money earned as a result of the dumping windfall won't be used to balance the city's budget, however. It would be used instead to make capital expenditures, a plan that has been discussed since the landfill was first considered potentially profitable to the city, said City Manager Linda Ritter.

"One-time revenues shouldn't be used for balancing the budget," she said.

The city has already rented some equipment to meet the increased demand for use of the landfill. A dozer to help move the refuse around is costing roughly $16,000 a month, Arnold said.

While the spike in activity likely will result in the city profiting, added operating expenses and a possible change in the lifetime use of the site, now thought to be available for use until 2056, still need to be determined, Ritter added.

• Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.