County moving forward in process to find a future landfill location

On Wednesday, July 10, the Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) voted to select “Moon Pit” as the preferred location for the County’s next landfill and authorized County staff to move forward with the selection process.

“With the Board’s selection of Hooker Creek’s “Moon Pit” property, County staff can now begin negotiating a purchase agreement, securing necessary permits and establishing a mitigation strategy that will minimize impacts to wildlife and recreation in the area,” said Deschutes County Solid Waste Director Tim Brownell. “We are doing our due diligence before any final decisions are made on a new landfill location.”  

The County’s Solid Waste Advisory Committee (SWAC) unanimously recommended the “Moon Pit” site earlier this spring. Then in June, the BOCC held a public hearing to allow community members to provide their input on the location of the County’s future Solid Waste Management Facility. The BOCC also provided time for the public to submit comments in writing. All written public comments and other relevant materials pertaining to the public hearing may be viewed here.

Following the public hearing, the BOCC asked for additional information regarding water rights, environmental mitigation and the value of the aggregate on the property, all of which will be considered as the County does further exploration of the “Moon Pit” site.

The “Moon Pit” property is located east of Bend on U.S. Route 20 and is currently a privately owned aggregate surface mine. SWAC’s final evaluation included the following feedback about the proposed location:

• The “Moon Pit” site is already disturbed (it is currently being used as an aggregate surface mine)
• It is likely to have fewer new impacts to wildlife and recreation in the area
• It is closer to existing Solid Waste facilities, which means lower haul costs and greenhouse gas emissions

A new solid waste facility will be needed once Knott Landfill, the County’s only landfill, reaches capacity in 2029. Over the past two years, the Department of Solid Waste has been working with a consultant team and SWAC to screen and evaluate potential in-county locations using siting criteria that include environmental, land use, site characteristics, and engineering considerations. This work is documented in the Deschutes County Solid Waste Management Facility Final Site Evaluation Report, which is available at: deschutes.org/managethefuture.  

The Department of Solid Waste has included $2,700,000 in the Fiscal Year 2025 budget for this next phase in the landfill siting process. The overall project development cost is anticipated to be between $50-60 million to procure, permit, develop and commence operation in 2030.

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Media Contact:

Tim Brownell

(541) 317-3177