Garbage company seeks help with cleanup

A half-century-old landfill that spilled waste into the Las Vegas Wash during a 1998 storm finally might get fixed under a proposed pact between governments and the waste management company Republic Services.

However, officials with the garbage collector have resumed their demands to have taxpayers chip in tens of millions of dollars for the work.

Clark County commissioners on Tuesday backed a consent decree between the county, federal agencies and Republic Services that nails down the cost of erasing problems at the closed Sunrise Mountain landfill on the eastern edge of the valley.

It also absolves the county of responsibility for the landfill's problems.

The former dump site will need an estimated $36.3 million to be cleaned up, re-capped and girded with a drainage system to ensure that neither malodorous gas nor solid waste leaks from it again.

"No dispute -- we all agree this a good consent decree," said Bob Coyle, Republic's area president.

However, he balked at paying the full cost, saying the company already had forked out $29 million to avoid regulatory tussling with the Environmental Protection Agency.

Republic agreed in 1999 to spend $36 million to monitor, cap and fortify the landfill. In return, the county extended the company's contract by 15 years to 2035.

Coyle said the company would pay the $7 million remaining from the EPA deal. The county, he argued, should pitch in $29 million, perhaps through a surcharge imposed on businesses and residents.

Coyle's push for taxpayers' aid drew a testy response from Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, who argued that Republic got off cheap with the EPA and should pay more.

"The 1999 agreement was the floor," she said, and not the ceiling.

Still, a couple commissioners asked county staffers to explore various options for fees, such as one imposed strictly on commercial users or one charged to both businesses and households.

A list of surcharge scenarios will be put before the commission within 30 days.

Last year, Republic tried to persuade the county to raise trash-hauling fees by 2.2 percent to pay for remediation at the landfill. The proposal evaporated.

Because Republic refused to sign the decree, it is nonbinding, Commissioner Bruce Woodbury said. However, it's important for the county to show federal agencies that it is ready to make progress on the flawed dump site, he said.

Scott Gordon, the county's environmental attorney, warned that federal officials could run out of patience if the county didn't sign off on the decree.

"I think we're getting close to the point that they're going to get uncomfortable," Gordon said.

The trash dump took in about 25 million tons of solid waste before Silver State Disposal Service closed it in 1993. Republic bought Silver State in 1997. A year later, a 100-year storm broke open the earthen cap, spreading garbage and sludge across a four-mile stretch to the Las Vegas Wash.

The rotting refuse threatened to contaminate Lake Mead, the area's main supply of drinking water.

Federal authorities cited the county and Republic for violating the Clean Water Act and ordered an extensive cleanup.

Coyle blamed Silver State for placing a sub-par cover on the trash pit, and characterized the storm as a freak occurrence.

Republic, he said, shouldn't keep paying for things beyond its control.

However, Giunchigliani said the company will make up for the cleanup costs through its long-term and profitable contract with the county.

When the landfill is sealed under 2 feet of dirt and rock and the site is made flood proof, the Bureau of Land Management will transfer the property to the county.

The site then could be converted to a park, solar farm or golf course, county officials say.

Contact reporter Scott Wyland at swyland@reviewjournal.com or 702-455-4519.