We’ll get to the County news in a minute, but first, before anyone freaks out – y’all may bump into a small smolder in the MacDonald and Dunn forests over these next three months, but the forest managers say it’s a planned thing. And indeed, this happens about yearly around here, once it gets cooler and rainier, sometimes as early as October, and often through December.
So, here’s what to expect: OSU Research Forests will start slash pile burning at a few spots around the forests. Basically, foresters will gather tree branches, tops, and unmerchantable portions of tree stems into piles for burning, and then ignite them.
The university assures the piles are ignited during specific weather windows and under the approval of local fire and smoke managers. They also add that slash pile burning is a cost-effective way to perform wildfire hazard mitigation, reduce fuel-loading, and prepare sites for restoration and tree planting.
Anyhow, the piles typically burn down to the ground in one day but will smolder for several weeks.
Benton County Worker Strike Imminent
Benton County released a statement saying they remain committed to settling on a contract with County worker union, AFSME, but it didn’t sound too hopeful. For instance, outlining that despite 140 hours of negotiation, they feel they’ve seen little movement from the union on wages, including 70 days with no counter after a financial offer from the County. Since then, the County says they have brought millions more dollars to the bargaining table.
Their last best offer: On Friday night, they said “We are providing proposed salary tables based on our last best offer for the public and our employees. These are the same documents we shared today with the AFSCME negotiation team. We are also sharing the cost of this proposal. The County is prepared to pay, for total wages and benefits, almost $45 million in year 1 of the contract (a $2.5 million increase over current expenditures), $50.4 million in year 2, and $53.5 million in year 3. This is a total of about $147 million on the table for employee compensation.”
The County also said two additional mediation sessions have been scheduled for November 7 and November 12. The union represents many of Benton County’s Health Department workers and has voted to strike starting on November 13 if an agreement is not reached.
New Landfill Expansion Application Received, County Has 30 Days to Respond
On October 30, Republic Services submitted a renewed Conditional Use Permit, or CUP, application to expand the Coffin Butte Landfill. This application is a revision of the one filed on July 19, 2024, that was deemed “Incomplete” by the County’s Planning Division.
The County anticipates that this revision includes more detailed technical reports and a broader spatial analysis to assess the existing conditions and potential impacts of landfill operations.
Benton County has a statutory 30-day period to complete a Completeness Check – a quality measure to ensure all required and requested information is included, along with any necessary supporting documents. The County will once again use an outside consultant for technical support to ensure all aspects of the application are thoroughly reviewed. Because of the timing of this filing – just before a general election and a possible labor strike – the County expects to use the full 30 days allowed to provide a response to Republic Services.
If the application is deemed complete, the review process will begin and must be completed within 150 days. If the application is incomplete, Republic Services may use the rest of the six-month period to provide the County more information from the August 16, 2024 Incompleteness Letter sent to Republic Services.
Folks who would like to receive updates on the process can contact pioinfo@bentoncountyor.gov and request to be added to the County’s solid waste management email list.
The full application can be viewed online at: https://library.municode.com/or/benton_county/munidocs/munidocs?nodeId=761dacfdc0789
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