City spends millions on more space for trash at landfill
City utility staff are clearing more land for trash at the Columbia Sanitary Landfill.
The Columbia City Council approved the $5.5 million project to prepare 11 acres of space at the landfill, located on Peabody Road, to handle more trash. This will be the city’s sixth “cell” at the landfill.
Columbia Utilities expect Cell 5 to reach “intermediate capacity” in October. That means trash will begin piling upwards in the other cells until construction crews complete Cell 6, which involves excavating land, installing liners and building a new access road. Money will come from special obligation improvement bonds that were authorized in April.
Cell 6 will make up the last bit of the 91 acres the city has permitted for use. Utilities Director Tad Johnsen said he expects that cell to reach intermediate capacity in five years, and hit total capacity in 14 years, with trash piling ever higher when Cell 6 hits intermediate capacity.
Council members and staff warily joked that the landfill might become the largest man-made structure in Boone County.
“Growth has many benefits,” Councilman Karl Skala said. “It also has some tremendous costs. This happens to be one of them.”
The city owns 720 acres of land in the area off Brown Station Road for the Columbia Sanitary Landfill, along with its compost site and recycling center. The landfill will also get an influx of coal combustion residuals from the city’s power plant.
Second Ward Councilman Michael Trapp said the project was necessary. The high cost of the project should spur discussion on a boost in recycling, which would keep material out of the landfill.
“Those are better ways to spend money that add value to our community and create jobs, versus creating an everlasting environmental liability to the city,” Trapp said.
The city will also collect methane gas from the new landfill cell, which is used as energy. Construction is expected to take place at the same time as a new leachate handling and storage project.
