Why Lexington’s trash is causing legal headaches, stink in Scott County
Lexington city officials are weighing whether to take sides in a long-simmering fight between the city’s solid waste contractor and leaders in Scott County, where Fayette County’s trash has gone since 2015.
Waste Services of the Bluegrass has had a contract to haul and take Fayette County’s waste to its Central Kentucky landfill in Scott County since 2015. A second, five-year contract was awarded in 2020 despite strong objections from Scott County officials and residents. That contract expires in 2025.
Shortly after that 2015 contract was awarded, Scott County residents near the landfill repeatedly complained of problems including foul smells and increased garbage truck traffic. The landfill has racked up more than 50 notices of violations from state environmental officials over several years, according to various state records.
Attempts by Waste Services of the Bluegrass to expand that landfill have been stopped. In May 2020, state environmental officials denied the contractor’s bid to expand its landfill at 493 Double Culvert Road. That decision has been appealed to the Franklin Circuit Court.
Now, Waste Services of the Bluegrass wants the city of Lexington to write a letter to state environmental officials to overturn Scott County’s Solid Waste Management plan, which was adopted in August.
That plan prohibits garbage from outside of Scott County, which means trash from Fayette, Jessamine and Franklin counties and the cities of Nicholasville and Cynthiana can no longer be taken to the Central Kentucky Landfill.
Lexington’s contract with Waste Services says the company must find another landfill for Lexington’s trash if the landfill in Scott County reaches capacity, Lexington city officials have said. Waste Services also cannot charge Lexington more to take its trash to a different landfill. The Lexington contract has affidavits from two other landfill operators that say they have the capacity to take Lexington’s trash if the Central Kentucky Landfill reaches capacity during the life of the contract.
The city spends roughly $3.5 million a year for trash removal.
Mayor Linda Gorton said Thursday, “Lexington does not have a role in deciding what Scott County does with this landfill. The state will decide this case on its merits. Our concern is the contract we have that requires Waste Services of the Bluegrass to dispose of our trash through 2025. Our obligation to the citizens of Fayette County is to ensure that contract is fulfilled.”
‘We need to back our contractor,’ council member says
Despite the mayor’s stance, some Lexington-Fayette Urban County council members said during a Tuesday meeting that they favored writing state officials to stress the importance of a Central Kentucky Landfill expansion and to support Waste Services of the Bluegrass’ challenge to the Scott County Solid Waste Management Plan. That plan was approved by the Energy and Environmental Cabinet officials in August.
“We need to back our contractor here,” said Councilman Josh McCurn during a Tuesday Environmental Quality and Public Works Committee meeting.
McCurn and several other council members toured the Central Kentucky Landfill.
“I was rather impressed,” McCurn said. “It was clean. There was no odor.”
Waste Services of the Bluegrass charges $17.75 per ton, much less than Republic Services, which charged $24.45 a ton previous to 2015. If the landfill in Scott County is not allowed to expand, Lexington will spend a lot more money in future years for landfill space, McCurn said.
Others were more hesitant.
“The contractor has had a lot of violations,” said Councilman Fred Brown. “Every landfill in the state of Kentucky has violations.”
Brown noted Gorton’s administration has decided not to send letters to the Energy and Environmental Cabinet or wade into the fight between the landfill operator, the state and Scott County.
State environmental officials sent Waste Services of the Bluegrass a notice of violation on Jan. 22, saying it must shut down by Oct. 31, according to administrative hearing records. Later, the state said the Central Kentucky Landfill could continue to operate until Oct. 31 as an unregulated dump, giving those governments that use Waste Services of the Bluegrass time to find a different landfill.
That decision has been appealed by Scott County, which has argued there is landfill space in other parts of the state and the landfill needs to shut down immediately because it is out of capacity.
According to documents submitted in various state court and administrative cases, it appears the Central Kentucky Landfill was out of permitted space in late 2020.
Greg Elkins, chief operating officer of Waste Services of the Bluegrass, told the committee Tuesday that other judge executives and mayors who have contracts with Waste Services of the Bluegrass have written letters to state environmental officials urging the state to allow the landfill to expand.
“A resolution from this group would send a powerful message to the secretary (of the Energy and Environment Cabinet),” said Elkins.
Waste Services of the Bluegrass’ appeal of the state’s approval of the Scott County Solid Waste Plan is pending before an administrative law judge. As secretary of the Environmental and Energy Cabinet, Rebecca Goodman can overturn or uphold that administrative law judge’s decision, Elkins told the council.
‘Highly inappropriate’ for Lexington to influence decision
Tom FitzGerald, a lawyer for Scott County, said it was inappropriate for the Lexington council to try to weigh in on a decision that will be decided by regulations and the law, not politics. Similar issues are being litigated as part of pending court cases in Franklin Circuit Court.
“I find it troubling that there is an effort to influence a quasi-judicial decision by an agency head,” FitzGerald said. “To me, it is highly inappropriate.”
Moreover, Fayette County and the other governments that have sent trash to the Central Kentucky Landfill have known since 2019 that the expansion of that landfill was in question.
“They should be more concerned about the quality of life of the people in that host county, who have suffered a lot, rather than saving a buck,” FitzGerald said.
This story was originally published May 20, 2021 at 11:41 AM.
