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By Dana Kazel
Beginning in January, residents and businesses in the St. Louis County Solid Waste Management Area could see a decrease in their garbage bill. That's because the St. Louis County Board has voted to reduce tipping fees at the county's regional landfill in Virginia by $18.93 per ton.
The St. Louis County Solid Waste Management Area includes more than 90% of the county geographically - all of the county except Duluth and surrounding communities that are within the boundaries of the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District (WLSSD), now known as Resource Renew.
Tipping fees are based on the County's cost to provide services at the regional landfill. The County's Environmental Services Department is self-sustaining. It receives no funding from the property tax levy.
Beginning in July, the regional landfill will become the destination for garbage from Resource Renew, as well as Carlton, Lake, and Cook Counties, which had all been part of a Joint Powers Agreement to dispose of waste at the soon-to-close Moccasin Mike Landfill in Superior, Wisconsin. Koochiching County has also recently approved an agreement to begin using the regional landfill.
It's because operating costs at the regional landfill will now be divided among many more customers that St. Louis County is able to reduce its tipping fees. Agreements with all of the new customers were based on this lower tipping fee.
"We often hear complaints when government costs increase, but in this case, thanks to a strong partnership with our neighboring communities, we're able to reduce costs significantly," said St. Louis County Commissioner Keith Nelson, who chairs the county's Solid Waste Subcommittee. "We are reducing costs for haulers, and we expect them to pass those savings on to their customers - the residents and businesses of St. Louis County."
The St. Louis County Regional Landfill has been in operation since 1993. In recent years, the county has invested approximately $22 million - using a combination of state, federal and local funding sources - to construct a state-of-the-art leachate management system to contain and treat PFAS and other dangerous “forever chemicals”. The leachate treatment system should be fully operational in the fall of 2026.
To learn more about the landfill and the work of St. Louis County Environmental Services Department, visit stlouiscountymn.gov/waste.
