Hotel debris moves up Garland County landfill expansion

HOT SPRINGS -- Debris anticipated from the demolition of the Majestic Hotel complex has accelerated the timeline for expanding the footprint of the Garland County Landfill, Environmental Services director Paul Thompson told justices of the peace Monday night.

To accommodate the 300 to 400 truckloads Thompson estimated the demolition will generate, the Garland County Quorum Court's Public Works, Building and Environmental Services Committee advanced his funding request to excavate and line the second cell of the landfill's second phase a year ahead of schedule.

Thompson said a $302,000 transfer from the Solid Waste Fund to the Environmental Services Depreciation Fund was set aside to pay for the project, which B&F Engineering, Inc. estimates will cost $270,698. Twenty percent of the 0.5 percent sales tax the county levies supports the Solid Waste Fund.

Thompson said debris from the complex's "yellow brick" building that burned down in February 2014 accounted for 204 truckloads. The county charges $24 per ton to landfill construction and demolition debris.

The landfill's Class IV permit doesn't allow it to receive hazardous material. According to the request for proposals the city issued demolition contractors in April, asbestos and other hazard materials will go to Saline County's Class I landfill.

Thompson told justices of the peace that the landfill has a 2.7-year life span with its current footprint. Opening the second cell of phase two extends its life to 3.8 years, which doesn't include phase one airspace the expansion would make accessible.

The 1.5-acre expansion will provide a broader platform for placing debris on top of phase one, creating a slope ratio that keeps the dirt, shale and hay covering from getting too steep and eroding.

The farther the landfill stretches to the edges of the 61 acres that encompasses all five phases, the closer the debris crest can move toward the 250-foot cap mandated by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.

Thompson said it could take four to six months to get department approval for the expansion, explaining that excavation needs to begin during the dry season to keep moisture from getting into the 18-inch clay liner. Too much water makes it less compact and unable to meet the department's requirements for keeping harmful material from leaching into the ground.

"We were going to wait until the next budget year to do cell two, but the [Majestic] is pushing us," Thompson said. "We need to get on it because it takes a while for ADEQ to approve it."

State Desk on 06/26/2016

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