Bees Ferry Landfill meeting scheduled for 6 p.m.

Tuesday

Staff report
Monday, May 19, 2008

The Charleston County Special Finance Committee will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday to
discuss public input regarding the future of the Bees Ferry Landfill.

Council members received public comment on the issue when they met April 29. The
County recently said it may renew the contract with the operator of the incinerator for
municipal solid waste. Renewal of the contract would reverse Council's recent action to
stop using the incinerator in 2010, when all municipal solid waste, or household garbage,
would go into the Bees Ferry Landfill.

County staff have been working with incinerator officials and are confident that a 20-year
contract including significant environmental improvements, such as mercury reductions,
will soon be presented to County Council for consideration and approval.

The meeting will be at the Lonnie Hamilton III Public Services Building at 4045 Bridge
View Drive in North Charleston.

3. Solid Waste Collection Study

Mr. Burdette advised Committee that staff had contracted HDR, a division that works
with sanitation services throughout the nation, to compile a report regarding the impact to
the Town for taking the Town’s household garbage to Bees Ferry Landfill once Foster
Wheeler closes. Mr. Burdette stated that there will be an estimated increase of $50,000
for fuel and maintenance of equipment. He added that the time concerns to travel to Bees
Ferry Landfill seem to be a wash because the waiting time at Foster Wheeler has become
considerable. Mr. Burdette added that going to the Bees Ferry Landfill will not be a time
consuming issue. Mr. Burdette advised Committee that staff will provide the County a
copy of this report and will also send a copy to the Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island.
Mr. Burdette stated that clearly there is no need at this point to talk about a transfer
station. He stated that if this system has to move to Adams Run, which is a number of
years out there, then there is no question in anybody’s mind that some type of transfer
system is going to be required. Mr. Burdette added that hopefully it will be County
developed, and an indication from some in the County, they would be looking at a
transfer system somewhere in the North Charleston/ Charleston vicinity. Mr. Burdette
added that the transfer system would not be needed in Mount Pleasant. He added that if
the County will run the transfer system, it would be fine for the Town to drop the garbage
across the river. Mr. Burdette stated that this will be many years out in the future and we
do not need to worry about that right now.

Mr. Burdette stated that there are some issues at the Bees Ferry Landfill with some
possible damage to vehicles which will need to be discussed with the County. He added
that we presume that improvements will be made at the landfill so that it can handle
packers discharging the loads. Mr. Burdette added that it will probably be expensive for
the County. Mr. Burdette said that he does not know what the County’s plans are
regarding increasing the tipping fee that residents have on the yearly tax bill. He said his
guess would be that the County will factor those costs into future bills.

Mr. Burdette advised Committee that staff does not consider this $50,000 increase to be
an issue.

Mr. Smith asked if there is sufficient room at the Bees Ferry Landfill to put a transfer
station there. Mr. Burdette answered in the affirmative. Mr. Burdette stated that Bees
Ferry is not ideally where the Town would like the new transfer station to be located. Mr.
Burdette stated that the transfer to Adams Run is at least ten (10) years out.

Mr. Smith asked about the longevity of the Bees Ferry Landfill. Mr. Burdette advised
Committee that the County will not be allowing contractors to discharge at the Bees Ferry
Landfill in the near future which will extend the life of the landfill considerably. Mr.
Burdette added that contractors have a real problem which will have an impact in the cost
of construction in the Charleston area.

Mr. Burdette stated that the secondary impact on the contractors when they can no longer
dump at Bees Ferry will affect illegal dumping. He added that we will start to see
contractors who do renovation jobs trying to put their debris out for the Town to pick up
and claim that the owner completed the work. Mr. Burdette stated that this will cause
issues with some citizens because the Town will not pick up contractor debris.

Mr. Smith asked Martine to prepare an article for the newspaper to address the potential
problems regarding the responsibility of contractor debris removal.

Mr. Smith reiterated that this report acknowledges that there is a cost, one that the Town
can live with, the biggest issue regarding time does not seem to be a significant problem
for the Town, and the big problem will come about in approximately 10 years unless the
life of the Bees Ferry Landfill can be extended.

Mr. Smith asked about the status of the Town’s oil recycling. Mrs. Repik stated that the
Town collected one thousand (1,000) more gallons of oil than the previous year. Mrs.
Repik stated that the Six Mile station is well used.

Mr. Burdette asked about the drop off of gasoline. Mrs. Repik advised that there is a
gas/oil mixture tank at the facility.

Mr. Smith asked how the Town processes these materials. Mrs. Repik stated that the
materials are collected by Santee Cooper’s disposal program and it is burned at their plant
as a fuel source.

Mr. Smith asked about the oil reprocessing business on Longpoint Road. Mr. Burdette
said that the business was gone.

Mr. Burdette advised Committee that another close municipality has approached him
about the Town picking up and removing their garbage and trash for a fee. Mr. Burdette
stated that he would be discussing this issue with staff to determine if it would be a
benefit to the Town. Mr. Burdette stated that if the Town could make money as a
contractor for this municipality then staff will provide the Committee with this
information.

Mr. Smith asked if the Town is constrained by federal laws to prohibit providing services
where there is a potential for private contractors to provide the service. Mr. Burdette
answered in the negative as there is no federal money involved.

Mr. Glasson asked how the budget is proceeding with regards to the increase in the fuel
expenses. Mr. Burdette stated that all departments with a number of vehicles will be over
in their budgets.

On behalf of the Committee, Mr. Smith thanked Mr. Peele and expressed gratitude to the
entire department for the excellent service provided by the Public Services Department.

Green Council:

Charleston County is looking for qualified citizens to help develop a plan to deal with
solid waste and environmental sustainability for the next 20 to 30 years.

The 15-member Green Ribbon Committee will be made up of county residents who have
expertise in related fields and citizens who represent different geographic areas of the
county.

The deadline to apply to serve on the committee is Sept. 15. County Council's Finance
Committee will consider the applications at its Oct. 2 meeting.

Councilwoman Colleen Condon, who researched and proposed the committee's make-up,
said "any improvement we make in solid waste will require municipal input, citizen input
and input from experts."

The county now spends $40 million each year on solid waste disposal, she said.

Councilman Henry Darby, who represents the Union Heights neighborhood off Spruill
Avenue in North Charleston where the county's trash incinerator sits, said it's important
that the committee recommend closing the incinerator.

The facility has been open 18 years and was supposed to close after 20 years.
But as the closing date approaches, the county is considering using the incinerator for
another 20 years.

People who live near the facility suffer from the pollution that comes from burning 70
percent of the county's municipal waste, Darby said.

"If the committee is objective," he said, "they'll see what everybody else sees, that the
incinerator shouldn't have been there in the first place."

If the committee doesn't recommend closing the facility, he said, he'll take the matter to
the U.S. Justice Department.

Condon said the committee, which will work closely with a solid waste consultant, will
spend about a year coming up with a plan.

"We want people to come back with the best ideas they can find around the country and
the world," she said.

Thinking Green

Charleston County is seeking applications from residents interested in serving on a 15-

member Green Ribbon Committee. The committee will make recommendations on how
the county should handle solid waste for the next 20 to 30 years.

The committee will be made up of:

--A member with energy management experience

--A member with transportation of solid waste experience

--A member with solid waste management experience

--A member with professional recycling experience

--A member with real estate development experience

--A member with environmental science experience

--A resident from the Bees Ferry corridor

--A resident living within one-half mile of the trash incinerator

--A government representative from a small municipality east of the Cooper River
--A government representative from a small municipality west of the Ashley River

--Two at-large representatives of the community

--Three members appointed (one each) by the city of Charleston, the city of North
Charleston and the town of Mount Pleasant.

Citizens may apply for these vacancies by contacting Kristen Salisbury 958-4031 or by
visiting the county's Web site at www.charlestoncounty.org.

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.

Hello Mr. Hudelson,

My name is Sharon Thompson and I am in charge of the Collegiate

Recycling Grant Program. Tina Lindler forwarded your grant request
concerning college grants for the sustainable compost project. We
appreciate your interest in the environment and trying to reduce the
amount of waste going into our landfills. Unfortunately, the college
grants are closed for this fiscal year, however, they will be open for
the '10 fiscal year in March and you may apply at that time. Your
project sounds like there may be permitting issues involved. Before
you begin any composting project such as the one that you described,
you may want to contact Joan Litton at 803- 896-4264 with our
permitting department and Marty Lindler at 803-896-4205 with our
compliance department. If I can help you with anything else, please let
me know. Thank you for your interest in the Collegiate Recycling Grant
Program.

Sharon Thompson
SC DHEC
Office of Solid Waste Reduction & Recycling
2600 Bull St.
Columbia, SC 29201
803-896-4227