Public can get first look at landfill cell

Utilities Director Joe Stapf was under a tight deadline to finish the new landfill cell to prevent the county from having to truck garbage out of Hernando County.

An analysis showed space at the landfill was expected to run out by the end of this month.

It was close, but Stapf came through and the public will get a chance to see the new cell during a grand opening event and tour scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Sept. 2. at 14450 Landfill Road, off U.S. 98.

Stapf said he has the permit in hand to start using the cell but still needs final authorization from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to certify it was built according to approved plans.

But Stapf said those are mostly "punch list" items and he anticipates having that final clearance by month's end.

The county landfill has been serving the county at its present location since 1992. But with increasing population and the need for more space, the county began construction on the new cell about four years ago at a cost of about $6 million.

"(It) came in under budget and on time," Stapf said.

The new cell has the capacity of holding 3.4 million cubic yards of waste and it should last about 15 years. It occupies 23 acres adjacent to the south sides of the two existing cells on the site.

Some of the bells and whistles on the new cell include: an on-site master pump station; a 175,000-gallon storage tank; and a leachate collection system.

Leachate is the liquid produced in landfills when rain percolates through the waste and reacts with the decomposed products, chemicals and other materials. If the landfill has no collection system, the leachate can enter the groundwater and pose a health or environmental hazard.

Meanwhile, Hernando County is placing renewed emphasis on recycling to eliminate recyclable tonnage from the landfill.

SP Recycling Corporation, which operates 22 recycling plants nationwide, is managing the recycling materials recovery facility, according to Scott Harper, Director of Hernando County Landfill.

Recyclable items include newspaper, paper, phonebooks, cardboard, plastic bottles 1 & 2, steel and aluminum cans. Hernando County Landfill also accepts electronic or e-waste (including old televisions, computers, VCRs, computer monitors).

Tours of the recycling facility and the cell will begin Sept. 2 at 10 a.m. and conclude by 2 p.m.