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Cedar Hills Regional Landfill site development plan alternatives

Cedar Hills Regional Landfill (click photo to enlarge)

Quick facts Solid waste generated in King County is disposed at the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill in Maple Valley. The 920-acre landfill property includes administrative and maintenance facilities, environmental control systems, and a 1,000-foot natural area buffer. Cedar Hills is the only active landfill remaining in the county and has been in operation since 1965. In 2008, just over 933,000 tons of solid waste was disposed at the landfill. In 2007, more than 1 million tons was disposed.

• Background
• Extending the useful life of the landfill
• Landfill site development alternatives
• Environmental review
• Public involvement and project schedule
• Contacts
• Documents

The King County Solid Waste Division is exploring ways to extend the useful life of the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill by developing more disposal capacity at the site. Five alternatives are under consideration that would provide additional landfill capacity. The alternatives under consideration would allow the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill to continue operation for three to thirteen years beyond the estimated closure date of 2018, which is based on current forecasts. A "No Action" alternative is also being evaluated as part of the environmental review process.

We welcome your participation in this public process, which includes public meetings and contacting the project engineer with any questions or comments, as we review the potential environmental impacts of the site development alternatives.

Background

The Cedar Hills Regional Landfill has been in operation since 1965. It is the only active landfill remaining in the county, and is the disposal site for all garbage generated by King County residents and businesses, excluding the cities of Seattle and Milton. The King County Solid Waste Division, which operates the landfill, has received national recognition for its operations, and the environmental control systems used in the operation and maintenance of the landfill meet or exceed the highest federal, state, and local standards for protection of public health and the environment.

Extending the useful life of the landfill

Continuing to use the landfill for as long as is reasonable will contribute to keeping solid waste disposal rates as low as possible. The costs of operating the Cedar Hills landfill are lower than the estimated costs of a range of other disposal alternatives (PDF, 1.2 MB). In 2006, the Solid Waste Division, in collaboration with city advisory groups, solid waste industry representatives, and others prepared the Solid Waste Transfer and Waste Management Plan (Transfer Plan). The Transfer Plan recommended the following for the Cedar Hills landfill:

“Explore opportunities for taking advantage of available landfill capacity to extend the life of this cost-effective disposal option; revise the Cedar Hills Site Development Plan and seek to maximize the capacity (lifespan) of the landfill, subject to environmental constraints, relative costs to operate, and stakeholder interests.”

The King County Council approved the Transfer Plan in December 2007.

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Landfill site development alternatives

The 1998 Cedar Hills Regional Landfill Site Development Plan (Site Development Plan), which guides the current development of the landfill, is being updated.

As part of this update, five alternatives that would increase the capacity of the landfill have been identified and are being considered. All of the alternatives would develop landfill capacity in the southern portion of the Cedar Hills property. Some of the alternatives would include placing support activities, such as maintenance and administrative facilities, in the southern buffer area; none of the alternatives would include landfilling in the buffer area. Each alternative will be evaluated based on environmental impacts, engineering feasibility, and cost. Following an evaluation of the alternatives, a preferred alternative will be recommended to the King County Council.

For a description of all alternatives and maps of the Cedar Hills site see the Site Development Plan Alternatives (PDF, 941 K).

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Environmental review

The State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) (external) requires that state and local agencies consider the likely environmental consequences of a project before taking action. The King County Solid Waste Division, as lead agency on the project, is responsible for conducting the environmental review.

Environmental review steps:

1. SEPA determination: completed. The King County Solid Waste Division has determined that one or more of the alternatives under consideration could potentially have significant adverse impacts on the environment and has issued a Determination of Significance (PDF, 192 K). This determination means that an Environmental Impact Statement, or EIS, will be prepared. The EIS provides an impartial evaluation of significant environmental impacts, reasonable alternatives, and mitigation measures that would avoid or minimize adverse impacts.
2. Scoping process: completed. The scoping process allows the public and other agencies to comment on the scope of the EIS and assist the lead agency in identifying issues and concerns that need to be evaluated. Both the natural environment (earth, air, water, plants and animals, energy and natural resources, etc.) and the built environment (environmental health, land use, transportation, public services and utilities, etc.) will be evaluated. The public comment period for the scoping process ran from March 30 through May 1, 2009.
3. Public scoping meeting: completed. The Solid Waste Division held a public meeting on April 20, 2009 to receive written and oral comments.
4. Draft EIS: available starting Sept. 30, 2009. In accordance with the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), under RCW 43.21C.030(2)(c), a Draft EIS has been prepared that analyzes the potential significant adverse impacts of each alternative and mitigating measures to avoid or minimize impacts. Copies are available at the following locations:
• King County Solid Waste Division offices: 201 S. Jackson St., Suite 701, Seattle WA  98104, Mon - Fri, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  Copies are available for review and/or purchase: paper copies $35; CD copies $5
• Public libraries (to be available by October 5, 2009):
• Renton Public Library (external)
• Fairwood Library (external)
• Issaquah Library (external)
• Maple Valley Library (external)
• On-line
5. Public Hearing: Oct. 22, 2009, 6:30–8:30 p.m. Greater Maple Valley Community Center, 22010 SE 248th St., Maple Valley (external). For accommodations, please call King County Solid Waste Division: 206-296-4466, TTY Relay: 711 by October 14, 2009. There will be a presentation about the project and an opportunity to ask questions at the Public Hearing.
6. Public comment period: Sept. 30–Nov. 6, 2009. Comments on the Draft EIS can be submitted online, at the public hearing, or by mail to the Project Manager.
7. Final EIS: Following the Draft EIS public comment period, the Solid Waste Division will prepare a Final EIS that will include responses to comments received during the comment period, identification of a preferred alternative, and additional analysis if needed. The Final EIS will be available during the first quarter of 2010.

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Public involvement & project schedule

Public involvement

There will be several opportunities for public involvement on this project. We welcome your participation in public meetings (see below) and contacting the project engineer with questions or comments, as we consider alternatives to extend the life of the landfill by developing more disposal capacity.

Project schedule - Revised Sept 2009

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Contacts

Send comments on the Draft EIS by Friday, November 6, 2009 to:

Mizanur Rahman
Project Manager
King County Solid Waste Division
Telephone: 206-296-8444, TTY Relay: 711
Fax: 206-296-8431

Draft EIS comments

To provide a comment, please complete and submit an online comment form. Comments must be postmarked by November 6, 2009 to be considered.

For questions or comments about the operation of the Cedar Hills Landfill call 206-296-4490, TTY Relay: 711.  This phone line is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Documents

Site Development Plan Alternatives (PDF, 941 K)

Determination of Significance (PDF, 192 K)

Draft EIS

(Note: some of the following PDF files are very large file and may take several minutes to download, depending on connection speed)

Draft EIS Notice of Availability (PDF, 318 K)

Draft EIS cover letter, fact sheet, table of contents, abbreviations, glossary and summary (PDF, 638 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 1: Introduction and Background (PDF, 6.1 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 2: Alternatives (PDF, 6.5 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 3: Earth (PDF, 96 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 4: Air and Odor (PDF, 3.5 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 5: Surface Water (PDF, 3 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 6: Groundwater (PDF, 7 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 7: Upland Vegetation, Wetlands, and Wildlife (PDF, 5 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 8: Noise and Vibration (PDF, 13 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 9: Human Health (PDF, 100 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 10: Land Use (PDF, 8 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 11: Scenic Resources – Aesthetics, Light, and Glare (PDF, 1.5 MB)

Draft EIS, Chapter 12: Cultural Resources (PDF, 600 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 13: Transportation (PDF, 388 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 14: Public Services and Utilities (PDF, 78 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 15: Greenhouse Gases (PDF, 105 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 16: Comparative Cost Analysis (PDF, 88 K)

Draft EIS, Chapter 17: References (PDF, 89 K)

Draft EIS, Appendix A: Special Use Permit (PDF, 447 K)

Draft EIS, Appendix B: Municipal Solid Waste Handling Permit (PDF, 3.6 MB)

Draft EIS, Appendix C: Distribution List (PDF, 70 K)

Draft EIS, Appendix D: Threatened and Endangered Species Documentation (PDF, 224 K)

Draft EIS, Appendix E: Supplemental Technical Memoranda (PDF, 1.9 MB)

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