As Knott Landfill nears capacity, Deschutes County considers criteria to evaluate potential new sites

All full by 2029; County 'road map' directs finding a new site - not sending trash elsewhere

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- On Monday, Deschutes County commissioners will review and discuss proposed criteria to help evaluate potential locations for the county’s new solid waste management facility. At this early stage, there is not a list of potential sites under consideration, officials said Friday.

The county’s only landfill, Knott Landfill, is expected to be at capacity by 2029. As a result, the county is working to identify a site for a new disposal facility to serve the growing region, according to a news release which continues in full below:

The county developed the proposed siting evaluation criteria in collaboration with the Solid Waste Advisory Committee, which will continue to support an open and transparent process to identify a site. The criteria includes environmental, land use, site characteristics, and engineering considerations.

While the need for landfill capacity is driving the siting effort, opportunities for related amenities such as waste diversion for recycling, bio-digestion for the production of renewable natural gas, organics composting and other waste management related operations may also be considered as part of the final site design.

The transfer station, recycling center, composting facility and household hazardous waste facility at Knott Landfill will continue to operate at their current location and be open to the public, even after the landfill closure.

The county will accept public comment on the proposed siting criteria through Monday, June 20. Interested parties can learn about the proposed criteria in detail by accessing the Board’s meeting packet, and provide written comments by emailing managethefuture@deschutescounty.gov.

The weighted criteria range from site availability and depth to groundwater to haul distances, wetlands, threatened or endangered species and adjacent land use impacts.

The Board of Commissioners is expected to deliberate and may approve the siting criteria at their meeting on Wednesday, June 22.

After Board of Commissioners approval, the criteria will be applied countywide to evaluate potential sites and then narrow to a list of three to five options by March 2023 for more detailed site analysis.

In 2018, anticipating the need for a new facility, the county began proactively exploring options to manage its future solid waste and worked with the SWAC to develop a road map. The resulting Deschutes County Solid Waste Management Plan was adopted by the Board of Commissioners in 2019.

The plan’s direction to site the new landfill within the county, as opposed to paying to truck waste to a regional landfill facility or employing costly alternative technologies, was strongly supported by Deschutes County residents in public surveys and community outreach during the plan's development.

“In the early planning, we heard a desire from the community to keep our solid waste management local, to help manage costs and reduce our impacts on the environment. Now, with support from the SWAC, we’re turning to the hard work of finding a location for the facility that will help us manage our waste for the next 100 years,” said Chad Centola, Director of Solid Waste.

Board of Commissioners meetings are held in person and online. Additional information is available at www.deschutes.org/meetings. Additional information about the siting process and the county’s efforts to manage the future of solid waste is available here or by visiting the Solid Waste Advisory Committee Meetings webpage.