Oklahoma City produced close to 300,000 tons of trash last fiscal year, or about 940 pounds for each of the city’s 638,000 residents. That’s roughly four times the weight of the Devon Tower, and 10 percent more trash than the city produced just five years ago.
As Oklahoma City’s population increases, so does the amount of waste generated, said Jennifer McClintock, utilities department spokesperson. That, in turn, shortens the life spans of the landfills the city has contracted with to take all that garbage. “If our landfills outgrow our population, that can mean big problems,” McClintock said.
To combat the problem, the city is putting its faith in a new, more robust multimillion dollar recycling program they hope will put a considerable dent in the waste stream.
Locating a new landfill is a lot like any real estate transaction. The deal typically comes down to price and location. Landfills are costly for city government and locating and getting the necessary government approvals for one can be near impossible, given the public opposition they tend to generate.
Currently, the city pays about $5 million a year to four privately operated landfills to accept residential and commercial waste. Rates are based on tonnage.
The four landfills cover almost a thousand acres in and around Oklahoma City. Two of them, the Oklahoma City Landfill and the East Oak Landfill, have capacity to keep operating for another 10 to 20 years, respectively. The Southeast Oklahoma City Landfill is projected to last another 40 years. The Northeast Landfill has the longest anticipated future, close to 100 years.
“Oklahoma is fortunate that we do have several facilities that are presently operational with permits,” said Pete Shultz, a district manager with Waste Management. “But there is a limited amount of space and if we can utilize that space for things that truly can’t be recycled, that will be best for everyone.”