The IMERF is an investment in our community’s future. Reducing the amount of material that goes into the Short Mountain Landfill will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prolong the life of the landfill.

The goals of the project are to:

• significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the landfill.
• divert recyclable materials from waste that would otherwise be landfilled.
• create local, sustainable economic development and jobs.
• use proven recycling processing systems.
• leverage public-private partnerships.
• construct and operate at an affordable cost to the ratepayer.

Absolutely! Especially for future generations.

The IMERF represents a fundamental transformation for Lane County’s handling of municipal solid waste. Processing of waste to extract recyclables and energy is a major, comprehensive step forward. It will serve as a model for other counties in Oregon and across the country.

Project benefits include:

• Mitigation of methane from Short Mountain Landfill - the largest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from County operations. Equivalent reduction of taking 20,000 cars off the road for the next 25 years.
• Exceed a materials recovery rate of 63 percent and extend the remaining life of the County’s municipal solid waste landfill by more than 20 years.
• Produce over 1 million diesel gallon equivalents per year of renewable natural gas (RNG). Fuel would be available for use in local transportation fleets and would have a negative carbon intensity under Oregon’s Clean Fuels Program.
• Two-year construction project utilizing local companies – creating 190 high-paying manufacturing jobs during construction and 65 ongoing family wage jobs for the operation of the facility for the next 25 years.
• Over $270 million in economic impacts benefiting Lane County over the life of the project.

In Goshen. The property doesn’t have a street address yet, but you can see it in the photo above. It’s between Highway 99 and Interstate 5.

Construction will start this year and we hope to have it open for business at the end of 2025.

The project is estimated to cost $150 million and will be shared by Lane County and Bulk Handling Systems.

Lane County will purchase the land and buildings to house the equipment.

• Buildings cost: $50 million
• Tax Credit: $15 million
• Cost to Lane County = $35 million (50-15)

Lane County would issue a limited-tax bond in spring of 2024 to cover up-front costs. Bond will be paid back over time through revenue from landfill tipping fees. It will not affect property tax rates.

Bulk Handling Systems (BHS) will construct and install the equipment for the facility, including the anaerobic digester.

• Equipment cost = $100 million

Lane County currently has some of the lowest garbage rates in the state – primarily because the County owns the Short Mountain Landfill that does not operate to make a profit.

Starting with low rates, the rate increases needed to fund the project would have a relatively low impact to the average residential customer. Lane County is proposing 8 percent fee increases in 2024 and 2025, followed by 6 percent increases in 2026 and 2027. This does not include the annual 3 percent fee increase that helps Lane County maintain current levels of service. The annual 3 percent increase is not related to the IMERF.

The landfill disposal cost is approximately 20 percent of a customer’s residential garbage bill - so, for most residents, these increases would amount to less than a $2 per month increase in the first two years of the project.

The County is seeking federal and state funding to help offset future increases. Rate impacts to commercial customers vary significantly depending on the amount of waste generated. Estimates provided by a large local hauler estimate an average increase of three percent per year for the next 4 years for the average commercial customer.

Low-income assistance is proposed to offset fee increases for self-haul customers at each of the 15 transfer stations operated by Lane County. Residents qualifying for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits would receive $1 off each load with their Oregon Trail (EBT) Card.

No. Lane County will not be loaning credit or money to a private company as part of this project.

Lane County will pay for the property and purchase the buildings to house the sorting equipment. Bulk Handling Systems will pay for the sorting equipment. Lane County is not loaning the private company anything.

For more detailed cost information please see the “What is the cost?” section on this page.

This project will not affect property tax rates. The County’s portion of the cost will be paid for through solid waste tipping fees. (The money Lane County Waste Management collects from haulers or residents when they bring garbage to one of our sites.)

Lane County released a public request for proposals in March 2022. Bulk Handling Systems was one of three companies that responded and their proposal was rated the highest.

Large projects require a public bidding process to select contractors and other services. Lane County followed all the relevant procurement requirements in selecting Bulk Handling Systems.

No. Lane County will not be loaning credit to a private company as part of this project.

Lane County will pay for the purchase of the property and buildings to house the sorting equipment. Bulk Handling Systems will pay for the sorting equipment. Lane County is not loaning the private company any credit.

For more detailed cost information please see the “Financial Questions” section on this page.

A very early draft contract was made public during a Board of County Commissioners meeting last year. That early version included template language and items that had not yet been negotiated.

Lane County continues to negotiate a final version of the contract with Bulk Handling Systems. Once completed, the final contract will become publicly available.

No. Lane County has taken no steps to use flow control with waste haulers. The County prefers to work with partners to manage waste in Lane County. The new facility should provide some operational efficiencies that haulers can appreciate: it will impact hauler routes minimally (it’s right down the road from the landfill), it will be faster to get in and out, and will reduce the need to transport recyclables hours away for processing.