BEND, OR -- Deschutes County Commissioners are poised to approve the Moon Pit site, east of Bend, for the next landfill. At Wednesday's public hearing, consultant Ryan Rudnick said the site of a Hooker Creek gravel mine has a lot of positives, "Water rights on site, there’s zero homes within one mile and one home within two miles. There’s a paved access road from Highway 20." But, he noted, it's not perfect, "There’s shallow bedrock throughout the site, which will result in difficult excavation. However, the SM [Surface Mining] zoning and DOGAMI permit that exist with the site, present the opportunity for excavation to be subsidized with mining operations." Although, it's too early to know how much that rock is worth.

Addressing concerns about increased traffic on East Highway 20, consultant Dwight Miller told Commissioners the public won’t use the new landfill, "This is what is seen as a limited-access facility. It is only county haul vehicles and employees that will go out to the site. And vendors working at the site, and so forth." He added, "The traffic will continue to go to your transfer stations. That’s essentially how a facility like this operates. And then that waste is transferred out to this site." 

Mike Riley, Executive Director of The Environmental Center, is glad local trash won’t be trucked out of the area, "We don’t want our waste to become out of sight and out of mind, and somebody else’s problem in some other part of the state. And we also think that there’s significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions from siting here in our community, and also local economic benefits." Riley served on the Solid Waste Advisory Committeer recommending Moon Pit over the alternative Roth East site, "Because it’s an already disturbed site, I think that was really important to us. It will have less impact on wildlife and cultural resources, and lower greenhouse gas emissions." 

Anne White, with the Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA),  generally supports the decision, but wants to see work to mitigate the permanent impact the landfill will have on wildlife and outdoor recreation in the area, "Deschutes County’s adoption of a robust mitigation program for what will be the first landfill developed in Oregon in 30 years would also serve as an important model for other jurisdictions across the state."

Commissioners did not make a final decision; choosing instead to accept more written comments until 4 p.m. on June 26th. If they approve the plan, closing the purchase from Hooker Creek could take another two to three years. 

The county has discussed a new landfill for several years. The Knott Landfill in Bend is expected to reach capacity by 2029.