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your homegrown newspaper January 28, 2026
Vol. 22, No. 21
First phase of county landfill expansion nears completion by Joyce Lobeck for the Valley Journal
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Refused service pg. 5
Ice safety pg. 8
Sports pg. 16
ust a few details remain before the first phase of the expansion of the Lake County landfill is expected to be finished and ready to get its first load of household trash by March. The finishing touches on the project are nearing completion for construction of the first of three planned cells at the landfill designed to accept household trash, said Stacey Kintigh, Solid Waste director for the county. He’s also awaiting a permit by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to operate the state-of-the-art cell. And the staff is being trained, Kintigh said. “We want to make sure we do it right.” Once the cell does become operational, though, “nothing changes for the public,” he said. Households should continue to take their trash either to the transfer station outside Pablo or one of the six container sites around the county to
PHOTO COURTESY OF STACEY KINTIGH / LAKE COUNTY SOLID WASTE
A large grinder that can compact trash will help make the best use of space in Lake County’s landfill expansion and help prolong its life.
keep down traffic on Kerr Road to the landfill. The new landfill is being developed on approximately 50 acres south of the currently operating Lake County landfill at 39276 Kerr Dam Road. Operation of the new
cell is anticipated to bring significant savings to the county. The existing landfill is reaching capacity. In addition, it can only be used for disposal of inert trash such as tires, concrete, clean wood and construction and demw w w.va l le yj our na l.net
olition waste because it lacks liners and other infrastructure to protect the groundwater from harmful substances leaked by household trash. Therefore, all household trash is currently being hauled by Republic for disposal at its Missoula landfill at a cost to Lake County of nearly $1 million a year. Once the new cell becomes operational, the county expects to use the money it will save to pay back federal loans obtained for the cell’s construction, Kintigh said. With the money the county will save, it also will be able to keep down the fee property owners pay for solid waste service while enabling it to keep the container sites open. And the savings will help finance the next cell. That won’t be nearly as costly, he said, explaining that quite a bit of new infrastructure was required for the initial cell, including a storm water pond, leaching pond, access road and new scales and scale booths. The hope is that the
three cells will meet the county’s solid waste disposal needs for 30 to 35 years, Kintigh said. To extend their life, the county has purchased a large grinder to compact the trash. Purchased at a cost of $380,000, the grinder was delivered in September and is now being used. Once the new cell is open, the grinder will be placed there. “It will save considerably more in the end. We want to make the very best use of space in the landfill,” Kintigh said. The grinder can “chew up” lumber, for example, and it can handle mattresses and tires, the two biggest issues for the landfill. He also encourages more recycling to prolong the life of the landfill. “Keep everything we can out of the landfill with material we can divert.” All recycling materials can be taken to the transfer station, and motor oil, cardboard and compost (leaves and grass) can be left at most container see page 2