Augusta Landfill Could Expand Vertically – What Does That Mean?

Over the last few months, we have been hearing a lot about how the life expectancy of Augusta’s Hatch Hill Landfill is less than five years.  Now, it looks like the cheapest route to go with the city’s trash is UP!

According to the KJ, Woodard & Curran, a consultant firm from Portland, has presented the City of Augusta with ten different trash options.  Those ten options were quickly narrowed to six options for various reasons.  The cheapest of those options would be to take the landfill vertical.

Most of the other options involved shipping the city’s trash to other facilities or hiring a private company to deal with the city’s refuse.  However, the cheapest option involving shipping trash elsewhere is approximately 25% more expensive than taking the landfill vertical.

The study also found that the lifespan of the landfill could be increased dramatically if the city stopped accepting trash from outside communities.  The city of Augusta only generates 6,000 tons of trash per year, while over 30,000 tons are brought in from other communities.

So, could Augusta soon see a trash skyscraper?  Well, no.  Taking a landfill vertical does not really mean we’ll see garbage stacked hundreds of feet in the air.  Instead, the trash is piled low and squat.  So, instead of a trash skyscraper, it is more like a trash office building.

While this video was not made as a presentation for Augusta, it does give you a good idea of what it would look like if that is the option the city chooses.

It is expected that city councilors will spend quite a bit of time discussing the issue in early 2022.

What is your opinion?  Leave a comment on our Facebook page our through our app.