Land purchase fuels landfill speculation

WASHTUCNA – A recent land purchase by Waste Management, doing business as WM, may have some Adams County residents remembering a proposed landfill project from three decades ago.

According to the Adams County Assessor’s Office, WM purchased about 40 acres of land east of Washtucna and north of state Highway 26, from Heidi Cooper (AKA Heidi Evans) of Kennewick, for $300,000.

The land is adjacent to the site of a proposed 500 acre landfill, which gained a land use permit from Adams County in 1994, but the land was never used.

At $7,500 per acre, the purchase price is considered well above the average price for comparable land in the area.

Almost 30 years ago, residents were somewhat divided on the subject of a huge regional landfill near the town.

The landfill is estimated to be able to hold 90 million tons of trash on the 560-acre site. Much of the trash was expected to be hauled from Seattle, which at the time produced nearly 450,000 tons of trash per year.

The facility was also expected to have recycling and composting capabilities for the waste hauled there.

On one side of the issue were those like the late Bill Wills of Lind, who served as an Adams County Commissioner from 1989-2000.

The proposed landfill was in Wills’ commissioner district, and he believed the landfill would provide a stream of revenue for the county in the form of host fees and low-cost solid waste disposal for county residents.

He also believed it would create jobs in the largely agricultural region. Wills died in March 2021 at the age of 88.

On the other side were area farmers, ranchers and residents concerned about the risks to the environment.

Concerns included a threat to the giant aquifer which lies under the region, and is the source of water for farms and towns in much of Eastern Washington.

The debate went on for several years in the early and mid-1990s.

WM was gathering support for the project by investing in the communities, setting up an office in Ritzville, donating to local programs, and providing tours of the Columbia Ridge landfill in Arlington, Ore.

Columbia Ridge was showcased as a model for the Adams County project.

Opponents created the Organization to Preserve Agricultural Lands to oppose the project on environmental concerns, and also alleged procedural missteps, including violations of open meeting laws on the part of Adams County Commissioners.

The actions of the commissioners were determined to be appropriate in court.

WM finally obtained permits for the landfill from the state Department of Ecology in 1996. But the process had taken much longer than expected, and due to a new contractual agreement between WM and Seattle, the landfill was no longer a profitable destination for the Seattle solid waste.

A court battle ensued over the permits, initially in neighboring Whitman County Superior Court in Colfax, where the permit application and process were determined to be lawful. The decision was ultimately appealed to the state Supreme Court, where the lower court ruling was upheld.

Since then the landfill project has never materialized. There has been speculation over the years that the Adams County site might be used someday.

WM has kept the permits current, and in theory, could begin operating the landfill at their discretion.

This most recent land purchase may add to that speculation?

Waste Management of Washington was contacted for comment on the land purchase, but had not responded by press time.