By TRACY LOEW/Salem Statesman Journal
CORVALLIS — Republic Services’ application to expand Coffin Butte Landfill is incomplete, Benton County officials have told the company.
The county on Friday gave Republic Services until Jan. 15 to provide additional information, including more information about potential impacts on the landfill’s neighbors.
Company officials say there is less than one year of space left in the cell currently being used for disposal. Republic Services is seeking a conditional use permit to expand the 178-acre landfill, located north of Corvallis.
The Coffin Butte landfill accepts waste from nearly two dozen Oregon counties and southwest Washington, including Lincoln, Linn, Marion and Polk counties. Less than 10 percent of the waste it accepts comes from Benton County.
The attempt comes two years after the Benton County Planning Commission unanimously denied the company’s request for a conditional use permit to expand, following public testimony in opposition. Among concerns were plans to close an access road and impacts on those who live nearby.
This time, the expansion attempt comes in the middle of a U.S. EPA investigation into massive methane leaks at the landfill, employee complaints about health and safety, and neighbors’ concerns about air and water pollution, and fire risks.
“We appreciate the county’s feedback and welcome the opportunity to provide additional information. We believe this process will yield an even stronger application,” company officials said in a written, unattributed statement issued in response to the Statesman Journal’s interview request.
It would add six years of life to the landfill, about half of what the company requested in 2021. And it would improve, rather than close Coffin Butte Road. The road has been a point of contention with neighbors, who say the road is their only escape route in the event of a fire or other natural disaster.
Why is request incomplete?
Benton County hired an outside consultant to help analyze the application.
- How the expansion would impact uses of adjacent properties and the larger area.
- Whether the expansion would impose an undue burden on public improvements, facilities, utilities or services.
- Whether the expansion would cause a change in, or increase the cost of, nearby farming or forest practices.
“The county anticipates that the revised submission will include more detailed technical reports and a broader spatial analysis to assess the existing conditions and potential impacts of landfill operations,” Benton County officials said in a news release.
The expansion attempt comes as Coffin Butte deals with several other issues.
In October 2023, the Statesman Journal reported on an EPA investigation that found massive methane leaks at the landfill. The EPA has not yet completed its investigation. On Aug. 7, members of Oregon’s congressional delegation called on the EPA to complete an investigation into concerns about the landfill.
In April, the Statesman Journal published an investigation into worker complaints about health, safety and environmental violations at the landfill. The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division cited the company for several of those issues.
And landfill neighbors have organized to oppose the proposed landfill expansion. In addition to concerns about the methane leaks, neighbors have complained about odors, excessive truck traffic, fire danger and possible groundwater contamination.
