Landfill still a problem

Michael Alexander

NLJ Reporter

On Sept. 3, Newcastle Public Works Supervisor Greg Stumpff gave a presentation at City Hall on the Landfill No. 1 remediation project.

The landfill, which is located in the field below the orange city water tank, had been thought to have opened in 1945. However, according to Stumpff, recent research revealed that it actually opened in 1922. 

It was in operation until 1986, but issues arose in 1984 when water was observed “seeping from the landfill.” This was especially concerning because this area has shallow groundwater.

According to Stumpff, “(the) assumption was groundwater was in contact with buried garbage.”

A closure plan was drawn up, and in 1989, the city closed the site and covered the landfill with “a 2-foot-deep native clay cap.” As part of the closure plan, continuous sampling of the monitoring wells was supposed to take place. However, Stumpff said, there is no evidence that such sampling happened before 1999.

In 1999, Weston County School District No. 1 planned to construct a new grade school near the site. This facility would have been within “800 feet of (the landfill’s) northernmost trench.”

City officials advised the school board of the problems with the area, and the board abandoned plans to build here.

The abandonment of the initial school construction site brought increased scrutiny to the landfill, and increased monitoring was initiated. Starting in 2000, the city began to sample the area’s groundwater and surface water. It also placed monitoring wells to keep track of the quality of the groundwater and to detect methane. This monitoring revealed chemical constituents in the water, and it was this discovery that led to the development of the remediation plan.

The city contracted Trihydro Corp., a Laramie-based engineering firm, to design a remediation plan for the landfill. This multifaceted plan includes “a continuous leachate collection trench,” a “pump system (that) will send water to (two) lined ponds” and a “methane trench near the (Weston County Sportsmen’s Club) building.” For the safety of the public, 8-foot-tall fencing topped with barbed wire will be placed around the ponds.

The city has partnered with the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality for the remediation effort, with 75% of the project to be paid with funds from the state DEQ’s remediation program.

According to representatives from the DEQ, who were at the presentation, this partnership will last for 10 years after the project’s completion and will include financial assistance from the state to cover the costs of continued monitoring.

The project is expected to cost $3,573,261.23, with the city responsible for 25% of the total. To cover this cost, the city has applied for State Revolving Fund funding in the amount of $1 million. The city requested this amount, which is approximately 3 percentage points higher than what the city’s responsibility would be at present, to account for likely inflationary increases. According to Stumpff, the city was able to get the interest rate on this 20-year loan down from 2.5% to 1.5%.

Construction is expected to be completed during the 2025 construction season.