LANDFILL FACTS

Tree Pile

A September snowstorm downed tree branches throughout the county this year, resulting in a 28,000-cubic-yard pile of tree limbs at the landfill.

Often when the landfill receives unexpected large volumes of wood waste such as this, the department pays to have it ground into wood chips on a one-time basis.

 December 2000

The Latest News on the Wood Diversion Project

In the temporary absence of a Natural Resources Department director, the county's involvement in the Wood Diversion Project was suspended in June 2000. However, Holnam, Inc., the cement plant in LaPorte that was also heavily involved in the project because of its interest in burning wood waste as fuel, continued its research and involvement. Holnam has put together a citizens committee to help with decisions to be made about the plant's alternative fuel possibilities. In October, department director Janelle Henderson returned from sabbatical, and recently Natural Resources staff members have attended several of Holnam's weekly meetings on the subject.

The Natural Resources Department has asked Holnam to provide a fuel specification for wood wastes. The department will determine whether the landfill's wood waste can meet Holnam's specifications at a reasonable cost.

Regardless of the outcome of Holnam's alternative fuel project, the department is considering hiring a contractor to grind the landfill's wood waste on a regular basis. The ground wood might be used as alternate daily cover for the landfill, sold as mulch through local retail outlets or composted at the landfill for onsite reclamation projects. If this idea is determined to be economically feasible, a Request for Proposals for grinding contractors will be posted in county newspapers and on the county's Web site. (Interested parties can also subscribe to BidLink here, through which they can receive new bids and proposals via email.)

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