The Sahuarita landfill will be the most expensive county-run place to take a load of trash starting next month.
Dropping off a residential haul of junk there will cost at least $15, compared with $10 at the other county-operated landfills.
The increase is one of a few measures meant to temper the Solid Waste Division's years-running operating deficit.
The plan to keep the landfill open, even if it costs more for people to use, was sparked by one announced earlier this year to temporarily close that dumping site to save money.
Residents of Sahuarita and Green Valley worried that the closure would cause an increase in illegal dumping, an environmental and cost concern.
The landfill's fate was partially in the hands of voters weighing the statewide sales-tax increase. The Pima County Board of Supervisors agreed in April to bail out the landfill with $100,000 as long as voters approved the sales tax. Otherwise, the money would have been needed to pay for increased costs the state would have shifted to counties.
People are also reading…
Pima County also asked Sahuarita to waive the fee it charges the county to run the landfill inside the town. The town hasn't yet agreed to waive the fee, said Ursula Kramer, county director of environmental quality. It is set at 10 percent of the income at the landfill, or about $100,000 a year, she said.
Town officials have asked whether the county will accept some town waste, and the issue hasn't been settled, Kramer said.
"This would allow the county to continue operating the landfill, provided the town of Sahuarita waives the host fee. The town has not done that, but in order to have the increased entry fee ready to go, this needed to go to the board now," Kramer said.
Supervisor Richard ElÃas asked Kramer how long it would take the landfill to reach capacity. At the current rate the county is receiving waste, the landfill has about three years left before it will be full, though it's hard to estimate, Kramer said.
"It could last longer, and over the last one to two years we've seen a tremendous downfall in waste," she said.
Supervisor Ann Day said she wants the county to avoid different dumping fees at different locations.
"We need a solid-waste policy that is sustainable," she said.
The supervisors unanimously approved the increased fee Tuesday, and the landfill will keep its hours of operation. Non-Pima County residents will still pay $30 for each load of less than 1 ton.
Contact reporter Andrea Kelly at akelly@azstarnet.com or 807-7790.
