Colorado landfill raises tipping fees

The Summit Board of County Commissioners have unanimously approved increases to tipping fees at the Summit County Resource Allocation Park (SCRAP) in Breckenridge, Colorado, the Summit Daily reports.

The decision will raise tipping fees from $58 to $69 per ton for commercial compacted municipal solid waste (MSW), from $72 to $85 per ton for construction and demolition (C&D) debris and from $33 to $40 per ton for biosolids. The new fees will go into effect June 1.

“Our tip fees are very out of line at SCRAP,” Summit County Solid Waste Director Aaron Byrne said at the Board of County Commissioners meeting Jan. 28. “We do not have currently a very sustainable model that we would like to have.”

Byrne noted the adjusted tip fees were based on a study by a consultant. The county has not increased tip fees since 2010 and even lowered them in 2016.

The county landfill operates as an enterprise fund, Summit Daily reports, meaning it must be self-sustaining with revenues offsetting expenses. Without raising tipping fees, the landfill eventually would not be able to support future projects, Byrne said.

SCRAP is a nonhazardous waste facility located two miles north of Keystone, Colorado. The landfill serves the entirety of Summit County and the surrounding area, offering landfill, recycling and composting services.

Last year, the landfill increased the Solid Water User Fee from $1.17 per ton to $1.30 per ton.