HomeMy WebLinkAbout10.22.26 Solid Waste Program Report1
October 22, 2026
SOLID WASTE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING:
SOLID WASTE PROGRAM UPDATE
Transfer Station Replacement Planning Process
Staff met with the consultant for a review and refinement of the conceptual design of the new transfer
station. Many cost-saving revisions were made that will also provide for a safer and more efficient
facility. A final design at roughly 15% detail and a cost estimate are expected by the end of October.
Staff will then schedule a BoCC workshop to review the work to date and recommend next steps.
Solid Waste Division Staffing
Two more transfer station staff have completed training and demonstrated the skills needed for
advancement to the next grade in the labor agreement. After many years of remaking the work culture
and providing a de facto apprenticeship program we are now in a position to identify the optimal
organizational chart that will provide staffing resiliency which translates into fewer service interruptions.
Transfer Station Repairs
It is likely that the cause of the loading pit skirting failure (falling I-beam) that was mentioned at a
previous meeting was caused by the knuckle boom crane failure when it contacted the skirting. Repairs
and improvements that will outlast our residency began under the Operations Manager’s direction on
10/9 and will be completed by 10/15. Operations have been moved to the ”Wall” with no service
interruption and with lots of customer complaints.
Transfer Station Capital Improvements
On 10/2 Public Works received notification from the Public Works Board that the application for funding
for replacement of the +40 year old transfer station customer scales was approved at the requested
amount of $1,865,822 with $279,873 in the form of grant and the balance as a 20 year low-interest loan.
61 applications met the eligibility threshold and after rating and ranking 47 projects were awarded
funding. Jefferson County was the only Solid Waste related capital project with the other requests for
roads, bridges, domestic water, and sewers. Jefferson County ranked 10th among all applications – a
huge accomplishment for Justin Miskell who lead the effort.
Bid documents are being assembled presently with the project planned for early 2027.
Curbside Collection Low-Income Discount
The Board of County Commissioners approved a “mini amendment” of the Solid Waste Management
Plan on 9/28 that revised language regarding a low-income rate for curbside garbage and recycling
service within the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) tariff. The Department of
Ecology then approved the amendments on 10/8.
This was the final step needed for adoption of the rate by the UTC which is pending and which will put
us ahead of King County as the first in the state with such a rate in a UTC tariff.
The Department of Ecology, and especially Blake Nelson, deserves a lot of credit for the support lent to
this effort. And of course the program wouldn’t have gotten off the ground without Waste Connections’
willingness to offer the discount rate.
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Additional and Future LSWFA Funding
Another shout-out to Ecology and Lacy Kooiman who pointed us to $128,994.66 in additional Local Solid
Waste Financial Account grant funding. This is the amount over the grant award amount that Public
Works spent on the recycling program in this grant cycle and it comes from a pool of funds that other
counties are not able to spend from their grant awards.
Public Works will apply for the 2027-2028 LSWFA grant cycle with funding used to offset costs for HHW
collection events and Kitsap County charges for servicing Jefferson County residents at their facilities.
Recycling Program Revisions
Staff have seen a noticeable decrease in self-haul customers at the transfer station recycling drop off
site, which appears to be reflected in the number of new accounts for curbside service as reported at
the August SWAC meeting. This is a good reminder that customer habits change slowly and that initial
indicators don’t always provide a good forecast.
Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events
The last of the 4 HHW collection events was held on 9/12 with high participation. As staff time allows,
the total weights of materials collected in 2026 will be calculated and compared to 2025 weights.
Economic Engine (4 cylinder, naturally aspirated)
The County’s solid waste facilities are seldom thought of as economic engines. But a look at
vendor/contractor payment distribution in 2025 shows that $191,452 of customer tipping fees were
reinvested into the local economy through Jefferson County small businesses that are relied on to keep
the facilities running.