County could lose significant solid waste funding

Seneca County commissioners recently voted to withdraw from the Ottawa-Sandusky-Seneca (OSS), pending approval from Ottawa and Sandusky County commissioners. The OSS Solid Waste District is primarily funded by host community fees, which are established by a host agreement. The host agreement was made in August 2019 between OSS and WIN Waste Innovations of Seneca County; then known as Sunny Farms Landfill. The agreement resulted in the host community fee, which is $0.75 on "each ton of debris or other material generated outside the state of Ohio" which is delivered by rail to WIN Waste and is not subject to the district's disposal and generation fees on solid waste levied under state law. According to OSS's 2023 revenue reports, the host agreement alone costs about $1.56 million a year. The total, which includes the host agreement and other fees from WIN Waste, is about $2.3 million a year. However, if the county is approved to withdraw from OSS, OSS will dissolve and the host agreement will no longer be in effect, according to the host agreement. This would mean the county will no longer receive any host agreement fees as the host agreement is voluntary between a company and a solid waste district. To receive host agreement fees, the county would need to enter into a new contract with WIN Waste as its own solid waste district. The $2.3 million in revenue OSS receives is used to fund its programs, which are active in Ottawa, Sandusky and Seneca counties. According to a June 2023 OSS presentation, Seneca uses more OSS resources than the other two counties and receives an additional $100,000 for its health department. If approved to exit the district, the county will also lose access to additional solid waste disposal fees from Ottawa and Sandusky counties along with any funds from designation agreements. The county will lose access to the total $2.3 million a year that OSS receives in funding. Based on the 2023 total costs for the OSS camp, which serves 40 groups for Seneca (47% of all groups serviced), Seneca would need $44,617.98 to have the same service as its own solid waste district. Based on the 2023 total costs of the Aim to Be Green program with Seneca having 17 sites or 40% of the sites, Seneca would need $321,565.32 to operate its own Aim to Be Green program. According to the most recent data, Seneca would receive approximately $373,841.19 per year in solid waste disposal fees from WIN Waste, based on OSS's current fees charged for in-district, out-of-district and out-of-state waste. The county can charge more than OSS. The county would lose access to about $1.9 million, when subtracting the estimated waste disposal fees from the total $2.3 million. The county would only be left with the approximate $373,841.19 from solid waste disposal fees from WIN Waste, any other revenue source or amount the county could receive is unknown at this time. It is not clear how the county plans to recoup the loss of revenue or how the loss of revenue would impact Seneca. In an explanation for the withdrawal from OSS, Seneca County commissioners stated they believe that the "solid waste disposal fees generated in Seneca County should be used to address solid waste issues in Seneca County, including problems caused by the presence and operation of WIN Waste's landfill." With the estimated solid waste disposal fees, Seneca could continue to fund its own Aim to Be Green program as its share of the costs is about $321,565.32. However, it would not be able to provide its own camp and its share of that cost is about $44,617.98. Other OSS programs would also not be available to Seneca, including special collections. The A-T reached out to the commissioners with multiple questions to understand what plans the county may have for its own solid waste district. "We would be happy to answer your questions once Ottawa and Sandusky counties notify us of their decision regarding our proposed withdrawal from the OSS Solid Waste District," the commissioners said in a joint statement via email. "Feel free to reach out to us again after the decision has been made." Ottawa and Sandusky County commissioners have 60 days to respond to the commissioners' request to withdraw from OSS. It is not clear when a vote will take place. To understand how a single county solid waste district can operate, the A-T reached out to Ashland County Solid Waste District Coordinator James Skora. Ashland County is similar in size to Seneca with Seneca having a population of 54,527 and Ashland County having a population of 52,910, according to the latest U.S. Census. "Our landfill was closed in the mid-1990s," Skora said. "We are in post-closure care (of the landfill). We budget about $100,000 for post-closure care expenses. No other disposal facilities are within our district." Rather than operating its own landfill, Ashland County uses private sector disposal facilities outside of its district. Trash collection is mostly private contracts and the city of Ashland collects its own trash with city crews. Ashland makes its revenue through contract fees paid to the district by "designated disposal facilities that accept solid waste from Ashland County generators," according to Skora. The district receives about $380,000 annually through those fees. According to Ashland's most recent solid waste management plan, the district receives approximately $800,000 a year in revenue. Other revenue streams besides contract fees are grants, recycling revenue, user fees and miscellaneous sources. Ashland County Solid Waste District provides the following programs. Youth Education Recycling drop off Residential scrap tire voucher Freon containing appliance voucher Industrial/commercial technical assistance Household hazardous waste and paint collection Farm tire collection and recycling Electronic waste and television collection and recycling