County postpones decision on construction waste issue

Southern Nevada construction waste haulers are digging in for a fight with trash giant Republic Services over how Clark County defines construction and demolition waste.

On Tuesday, Clark County commissioners, an official from Republic Services and leaders of several smaller waste haulers clashed over a proposed change contained in an ordinance introduced by Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani.

The commission decided to postpone a decision on the ordinance while the participants iron out their differences but not before some trash talk about the waste hauling business in Southern Nevada.

"It is the little tweaks that can make all the difference in the world," Giunchigliani said of how a seemingly small change can prompt heated debate.

At one point during the discussion, Giunchigliani accused Republic Services of violating its franchise agreement, which drew a sharp rebuttal from company Vice President Bob Coyle.

"I take offense at that, commissioner," Coyle snapped. "Do an audit."

At the core of the dispute is a debate over the right to haul construction and demolition waste from homes and businesses throughout the county to landfills or material recovery facilities for sorting and recycling.

Republic Services is the exclusive curbside waste hauler in Clark County, Henderson, North Las Vegas and Las Vegas, for which it earns money through customer billings and pays franchise fees to local governments.

But that exclusivity doesn't include construction and demolition waste, which means there is competition from many companies that want to haul debris from residential and commercial building and renovation projects.

Giunchigliani sought to make life easier for those companies by changing the county's definition of construction and demolition waste to match the one used by the Southern Nevada Health District, which regulates waste haulers.

When Republic officials got wind of the proposal, however, they asked for an amendment that would have limited the definition to cover only waste coming from a project with an approved building or demolition permit.

The other waste haulers cried foul, saying Republic was trying to prevent them from getting business from people doing projects that don't require a permit, such as replacing a bathroom vanity or tearing out old carpet.

"Republic is saying that the construction and demolition waste outside of a project that has a permit is theirs," said Chris Darling of A Track-Out Solution. "They are trying to limit our market."

Giunchigliani refused to add Republic's proposed language to her bill, so the company got Commissioner Steve Sisolak to offer an amendment.

"When you don't have somebody to introduce it, you can't even discuss it," Sisolak said.

Republic's argument is that outside companies are expanding the definition of construction and demolition waste so broadly as to cut into residential and commercial solid waste, Republic's exclusive province under the franchise pact.

"There are examples when stuff is labeled as construction and demolition waste, and it is completely not," Republic lobbyist Jennifer Lazovich said. "It is true trash, food, things that are blatantly under our franchise agreement."

Limiting the definition to sites covered by building or demolition permits would clearly distinguish what is and isn't Republic's exclusive trash, Lazovich said.

"This was our attempt at this; obviously it needs some more discussion," she said.

Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@
reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285.