Commissioners Also Discuss Impacts of Waste-to-Energy Facility Closure
Salem, OR—On Wednesday, December 18, the Marion County Board of Commissioners approved an adjustment to the solid waste collection and disposal rate within the unincorporated areas of Marion County. This increase is based on an annual cost of service analysis (COSA) from standardized financial reports of the eight franchised haulers in the county. These reports are independently analyzed and the financial results are used to calculate the cost of providing services for the coming year.
A driving factor of the increase in cost to dispose of medical waste in the community is due to the planned closure of the local waste-to-energy facility, ReWorld.
“This year has a significant impact to us,” said Brian May, Environmental Services Division Manager for the Department of Public Works. “With ReWorld closing on December 31 and no longer accepting medical waste within Marion County, we are no longer able to provide the reduced cost that we’ve been able to for decades.”
“We’re looking at approximately a 70% rate increase for medical waste disposal,” continued May.
Residential garbage rates will increase 2.5% on January 1, 2025. The main drivers of the increase to residential collection this year are labor adjustments and the loss of medical waste benefits, which previously offset some of the costs to residential collection.
“Beyond the rate increases that effect our residents, there are other consequences to the legislation that shut down the local waste-to-energy facility, including impacts to our local hospitals, who will see increased costs to dispose of medical waste, as well as to law enforcement across the state who will now need to find other, more costly means to dispose of confiscated firearms and drugs,” said Commissioner Kevin Cameron, Chair.
“For almost my entire lifetime, we have been the most unique county in the state by having a waste-to-energy facility,” said Commissioner Danielle Bethell. “And there’s a lot of unfortunate opinions that are not based on fact in our community, that was driven by Senator Patterson, to produce the legislation that did put the final stake in the heart for ReWorld to be a business that can no longer operate in Oregon in a facility that has not just kept the costs low for our residents but has prevented waste from going to a landfill.”
“I just want to add the waste-to-energy facility is super popular here in Marion County,” said Commissioner Colm Willis. “Everybody I talk to wants to know what we’re doing to save ReWorld, and the problem is if the state legislature says no, there’s only so much we can do. And that’s the frustration. It’s been a phenomenal investment for Marion County, bringing in money to keep garbage rates low for county residents. Not only is it the best way to manage waste, not only is it good for the environment, it’s also always been a good financial investment for the community. That’s something that’s a real challenge for us going forward.”
“I do want to talk about the small percentage increase on the residential side,” said Commissioner Bethell. “Ultimately, the climate is getting more and more difficult in Oregon for solid waste processors. As commissioners, we work incredibly hard to balance the needs of our residents with the costs associated with removing solid waste. We are continually looking for ways to improve the system and keep costs low for our community.”
