Blue Earth County’s proposed RDF processing plant could increase residential garbage rates by 50% and triple the rates for businesses

With Blue Earth County considering the pros and cons of building a refuse-derived fuel (RDF) processing plant at the Ponderosa landfill to serve Xcel Energy’s Mankato facility, the company that has effectively provided such services for three decades cautioned county leaders today about costly consequences for residents, businesses and the environment.

Among those consequences would be:

• County taxpayers would fund the $25.9 million plant construction, as well as ongoing maintenance of over $500,000 annually.
• Residential garbage rates could increase more than 50 percent.
• Garbage rates for commercial businesses could increase from the current $50 per ton to $150-$180 per ton at a new county plant.
• Heavy truck traffic and greenhouse gas emissions would increase.

These and other statistics were sent today to Blue Earth County commissioners and staff leadership by North Mankato’s LJP Waste Solutions, whose subsidiary, Minnesota Waste Processing Company (MWPC), has effectively transformed waste into clean energy since 1993. With the county board holding a Tuesday, Sept. 9, work session related to the proposed RDF processing plant, LJP wanted to ensure county representatives had accurate information to consider.

“With so many discussions and written communications between Blue Earth County, Xcel Energy, LJP Waste Solutions and others over the past few months, it can be easy for various facts and figures to blur together,” said LJP President Kent Harrell. “That’s why we put together a brief fact sheet that boils everything down to the key issues facing county leaders. We believe that once commissioners have this solid data in front of them, they’ll reconsider plans to build a taxpayer-funded plant – especially since a private-sector facility has performed so well for 32 years at no risk to taxpayers.”

Harrell added that if the county built a new plant, LJP would continue serving its existing RDF customers throughout southern Minnesota by building a new facility on its property in North Mankato. The result would be two RDF plants in close proximity – one serving Blue Earth County, one serving nearby areas of the state – creating redundancies that go against Minnesota climate and waste reduction goals.

“We’d rather continue working in partnership with Blue Earth County, as we have for all these years, to provide affordable services to residents and businesses of this region,” said Harrell. “Spending tax dollars to build an unnecessary RDF processing facility would only serve to put LJP and Blue Earth County in competition with each other, and nobody benefits from that.

“We know leaders at Blue Earth County are seeking to identify the most effective ways of addressing their constituents’ needs, now and in the future. So are we. There’s a logical solution that will benefit everyone. It just hasn’t been perfected yet. We’re here to assist in planning, exchanging ideas and further helping the county during this important process.”

WHY A NEW PLANT IS BEING CONSIDERED

For 32 years, LJP Waste Solutions’ subsidiary – Minnesota Waste Processing Company (MWPC) – has effectively transformed waste into clean energy by processing refuse-derived fuel (RDF) for use at Xcel Energy’s Mankato facility. While having MWPC located at Xcel has proven to be very efficient, Xcel has made a business decision to not have another entity owning a building on its property.

Blue Earth County is now considering building an RDF processing facility at the Ponderosa landfill, even though LJP has already agreed to build a new facility on its North Mankato property – at LJP’s own expense.

ADDITIONAL DETAIL ABOUT HOW A NEW RDF FACILITY WOULD IMPACT LOCAL RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES

• COUNTY TAXPAYERS WILL PAY $25.9 MILLION – That’s the estimated amount of local taxpayer dollars the County will need to allocate for construction. Plus, ongoing maintenance will require over $500,000 more annually. MWPC has required $0 tax dollars over its 32 years of processing RDF. LJP is committed to building a new RDF facility to continue serving Blue Earth County, again at no taxpayer cost.

 

• RESIDENTIAL GARBAGE RATES COULD INCREASE MORE THAN 50% – Higher operating costs due to paying off the construction, hiring transport drivers, traveling longer distances and more will need to be passed on to customers, which are estimated to result in homeowners paying over 50% more for their services if the County constructs a new facility.

 

• BUSINESSES COULD SEE GARBAGE RATES TRIPLE – Increases in operating costs at a new County plant could see businesses paying $150-$180 per ton, as opposed to their current $50 per ton rate. Yes, at least three times more than they’re now paying.

 

• HEAVY TRUCK TRAFFIC AND GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS WILL INCREASE – With the current RDF facility located at Xcel Energy, there is no over-the-road trucking needed. The County’s proposed facility at the Ponderosa landfill would be 9.8 miles from Xcel, putting as many as 3,000 large semi-truckloads on county roads each year. This would not only jeopardize safety and erode public infrastructure, it would greatly increase greenhouse gas emissions.

 

• COUNTY STATS NEED FURTHER REVIEW – Blue Earth County data indicate that each residence generates 1.15 tons of municipal solid waste each year, yet the statewide average is just 0.60 tons. That would mean county residents generate 92% more waste than the rest of Minnesota households, which isn’t the case.

Additionally, the volume of Blue Earth County solid waste that can be made into RDF is approximately 40,000 tons a year. The County’s proposed RDF project would require 60,000 tons, which simply isn’t possible.

LJP urges Blue Earth County leaders to look further into available data to ensure their decisions on allocating taxpayer dollars are based on the latest information.

LJP Waste Solutions is located at 2160 Ringhofer Drive in North Mankato. Its web address is www.LJPwastesolutions.com.