July 2019
Gering and Scottsbluff Seek Property for New Landfill Construction
The Cities of Gering and Scottsbluff (Cities) are working to identify new candidate locations for the construction of a future regional landfill to serve Western Nebraska. The Cities plan to construct a new landfill as a replacement for the current Gering Landfill, which is expected to reach its permitted capacity by 2026. Identifying and selecting a suitable site location is key to propelling the project forward.
The Cities are looking to identify a land parcel located within a 45-mile radius of the Cities. The site should comply with the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality’s Location Standards for new landfill construction including such key considerations as distance buffers from state or federal highways (1,000 feet) and airports (at least 5,000 feet depending on airport type) among others. In addition, the ideal site would be within a mile of a county road with three-phase power accessibility, without residences, surface water, groundwater wells, or irrigation facilities in close proximity.
The Cities selected Trihydro Corporation (Trihydro) as the engineering firm to support the development of the landfill. Trihydro is tasked with supporting the Cities through incremental phases of this project including assistance with the on-going site selection process. The goal of the siting process is to identify a landfill site which will best serve the residents of Western Nebraska for at least 100 years and be protective of human health and the environment. During the permitting process, a comprehensive subsurface investigation will be conducted to confirm depth to groundwater, groundwater quality and to characterize the subsurface geology. The data collected during the subsurface investigation will be used to design an engineered containment system (ECS) which meets or exceeds regulatory requirements and protects groundwater.
It is important to identify candidate sites as soon as possible to ensure that our communities have a local cost-effective disposal option in place by the time the existing landfill closes. Interested landowners are encouraged to notify the Cities of potential property for consideration by contacting Travis Evans, P.E., Trihydro, at (307) 745-7474 or tevans@trihydro.com.
The Cities of Gering and Scottsbluff have jointly embarked upon a project to identify potential landfill sites to serve their communities for the next 50 to 100 years. As of October 2018, the Cities have contracted with a consulting engineer to help guide them through the process of identifying potential locations that would be cost effective and protective of human health and the environment. Solid waste management services are an essential community service. The Cities believe it is important to look at potential avenues to maintain that service under local control as they plan for the future.
The Cities understand that a thoughtfully-considered, technically-sound selection process takes time. Therefore, the Cities are being proactive and starting this process now, even though the existing Gering Landfill will be in operation for a minimum of 5 more years. Additional disposal capacity at the current landfill will be evaluated along with potentially more remote landfill locations. Typically, when a community selects a more remote landfill location, there is little change in convenience to the community residents, since trash and recyclables can be dropped off at a local transfer station, rather than the more distant landfill location. These types of facilities are an important part of integrated solid waste management planning.
The Cities will provide updates on the landfill project’s progress through this website. If you have specific questions or would like to provide feedback, please feel free to contact us.