Storm debris cleanup begins in northwest Las Vegas

Trucks clearing August flood debris from the Kyle Canyon Detention Basin started to move through the northwest valley Tuesday.

The trucks are projected to make 64 trips per day for 10 days as they transport approximately 25,000 tons of debris to the Apex Regional Landfill, according to Las Vegas city officials.

“With the Carpenter 1 fire on Mount Charleston, a large area of vegetation was lost which caused … lack of absorption, so when the water came down from statistically unlikely raining, mud and water ran down and it pretty much flooded out the basin,” said City of Las Vegas Deputy Director of Operations and Maintenance Jerry Walker.

Cleanup started a week after the flood, but debris within the basin needed to dry because the cost of removal is paid by the ton. Efforts to clear the basin started in November 2013, Walker said.

To lower the disposal cost, the City of Las Vegas removed 70 percent of the material to a landfill on Spring Mountain Road and Buffalo Drive, retained 5 to 10 percent of the debris at the basin to fill erosion areas and planned for 12 to 15 percent of debris to be relocated to Apex Regional Landfill.

Approximately 30,000 tons of debris will be moved by Las Vegas Paving and disposed of by Republic Services, costing approximately $750,000 to transport, Walker said.

He added that unlike the disposal to the landfill on Spring Mountain Road and Buffalo Drive, the debris disposal to Apex Regional Landfill may create traffic as eight trucks per hour are projected to drive through the area and onto U.S. Highway 95 and the 215 Beltway.

That didn’t concern one area resident.

“There shouldn’t actually be any traffic issues,” said Paul Agius on Tuesday.”There is always a lot of construction in this area so we know how to get around and there is a lot of opportunity for rerouting.”

Walker said that although it will take 10 to 12 more weeks for the basin to be cleared, it remains fully functional.

“We already cleaned the drainage paths to the outlets so assuming it is not a record setting rain, the basin will be able to cope with it,” Walker said.

According to Walker, the total cost of the basin’s debris removal is estimated at about $5 million. The City of Las Vegas is currently paying for the disposal, but discussions are ongoing for reimbursement by the Clark County Regional Flood Control District on costs associated with the basin’s cleanup.

Contact reporter Maria Agreda at magreda@reviewjournal.com and (702)383-0391.