BEND, OR -- Deschutes County’s new landfill will likely be at the Moon Pit site, currently an aggregate gravel mine north of the town of Millican. The Solid Waste Advisory Committee settled on the location at its meeting Tuesday, choosing to not pursue a second option known as "Roth East," east of Millican. The committee's recommendation now goes to Deschutes County Commissioners, who will make the final decision.

Committee member Chris Ogren voted for Moon Pit, saying it’s important to choose a spot that will last as a landfill for 50-100 years, "We don’t know what the future of the Roth East site will have. I get that. I also think it’s unlikely that it’ll be a big mine. So, I think just the industrial site for me is the reason I’m leaning that way."

Keith Kessaris agrees the gravel pit is better suited for a landfill and faces fewer wildlife challenges, "Because of the disturbance that’s already occurred in Moon Pit, I think it lessens the environmental impact there, compared to the Roth East site. Also one thing, the observatory at Pine Mountain is one of the two observatories left in the state, besides the one we have here in Sunriver. I think there needs to be more attention paid to that and I think to protect that as much as possible, for future generations. The Moon Pit site, unfortunately the financial impact is a bit more, but I think it’s a better location."

Robin Vora also took note of the higher cost to purchase and develop Moon Pit, but he worries Roth East will take too long, "I like the Roth East site, from a financial standpoint. I’m concerned about the habitat and how that will be handled and the delay of those processes, as well. I’m not super excited about siting a landfill in a current mining application, but it might be the way to go."

Committee member Cassie Lacey, with the City of Bend, noted Roth East is also farther from the county’s most populated areas, "The city of Bend has explicit council goals around greenhouse gas emission reduction, so that’s definitely an important factor for us; just kind of that distance traveled."

Bend's Knott Landfill is expected to reach capacity within five years.