Officials want to expand Franklin County\u2019s landfill to last until 2068. \u201cIt gives us the ability to maximize the land,\u201d said Scott Perry, operations and maintenance director for the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio, made up of 41 local governments.<\/p>\n
The landfill, open since 1984, takes in about 4,000 tons of trash per day. At that rate, without the proposed expansion, the landfill would be full in 21 years in 2038. With the expansion, it could last another 30 years until 2068. The proposed landfill expansion of 50.7 acres among several steps in a plan to ensure that the public won\u2019t have to pay $100 million or more for a new landfill anytime soon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re about,\u201d\u00a0SWACO director Ty Marsh said, \u201cis public health and safety, ensuring that we dispose of the waste within Franklin County in a way that\u2019s environmentally and financially responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n
The landfill technically is 535 acres but SWACO currently has permission from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to use just 283 acres of it for waste. Now, the authority is asking the EPA for permission to use more of the area.<\/p>\n
While SWACO owns land to the west and north of the existing landfill, the expansion would remain within the current triangle of property in Jackson Township \u2014 London-Groveport Road on the north, Interstate 71 to the south and east and Young Road to the west \u2014 where waste is now dumped. This expansion originally was approved in 1997, but a decade later, it was held up because the Ohio Department of Transportation considered using some of the land for a new interchange from I-71 onto London-Groveport Road.<\/p>\n
Because the interchange was built differently than originally expected, it didn\u2019t take landfill property. Now, SWACO now wants to use that property, immediately south of London-Groveport Road, for the planned expansion and a new approval is needed. \u201cWe are not using virgin ground,\u201d Perry said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel very good about going to the public … about this,\u201d Marsh said. Along with the expansion, Marsh said, recycling to keep waste out of the landfill is paramount to extending its life. \u201cWe\u2019ve got a big initiative coming down the pike on recycling,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Not only will recycling keep some waste out of the landfill, Marsh believes some of the recyclables can be sold and make millions for SWACO. Of the waste going into the landfill, Marsh said 60 percent comes from businesses. Because of that, SWACO will make a special effort to educate businesses about recycling. \u201cWe want to try to divert it before it gets into the (waste) stream.\u201d Marsh said.<\/p>\n
Grove City Mayor Richard \u201cIke\u201d Stage supports the landfill expansion, but insists it shouldn\u2019t be ugly or smelly. \u201cThe concern always is what it will look like, as you come up I-71 particularly,\u201d Stage said.<\/p>\n