The borough’s contract with Republic Services — the company that manages the transportation and disposal of Wrangell’s trash —expires at the end of July. Despite a substantial increase in Republic’s pricing, the borough assembly voted to extend the company’s contract at its June 27 meeting due to a lack of cheaper alternatives.
In 2018, Republic charged $121.03 per ton for disposal and hauling, according to a letter from the company’s area president Gregg Brummer. In the contract the assembly just approved, the disposal cost has increased more than 45% to $176 per ton, which will take effect Aug. 1.
The borough’s renewed contract with Republic covers the next two years, with a one-year renewal option.
Trash pickup rates for residents and businesses will stay the same this fiscal year; the borough will reevaluate those rates on its usual yearly schedule next spring.
The borough ships approximately 65 containers per year — “a little bit more than one a week,” Public Works Director Tom Wetor told the assembly. Each container holds 30 tons of solid waste and will cost $5,280 per container under the new Republic contract. That will add up to about $340,000 a year under the new rate, about $107,000 more than the old rate.
The company cited increased fuel and transportation costs for shipping waste to a Washington state landfill site as the primary drivers of its rate increases, explained Borough Manager Jeff Good.
After learning about the significant rate hike, borough officials reached out to two other companies that operate in Southeast Alaska — Waste Connections and Waste Management — for alternative quotes, but only Waste Management responded. It’s price to ship and dispose of waste was nearly $600 more per 30-ton container than Republic.
The borough has accepted Republic’s new price for the time being, but is hoping to take advantage of cost-saving opportunities in the future. Other Southeast communities have waste management contracts up for renewal in the coming years, and if Wrangell joins with them the towns might be able to achieve lower rates through collective bargaining.
“There’s a push within SEASWA (the Southeast Alaska Solid Waste Authority) to get all the small communities back onboard,” Wetor said. “We’re basically trying to time ourselves with as many communities as possible so that we can hopefully have … better rates with either AML, Republic, Waste Management or whoever.”
In two years, Ketchikan’s and Petersburg’s contracts will be up for renewal at the same time as Wrangell’s.
“Really, if we could get Juneau involved, that would probably be the best-case scenario,” he added. “Because they generate as much trash as the rest of Southeast combined.”
Wetor also plans to apply for a grant that could help Wrangell assess its waste disposal needs and possibly explore creating a regional landfill.
“The hope, if we were to get it (the grant), would be to basically reassess … could the community look into more of a regional processing facility?” said Wetor. “Could we try to work with a federal agency on a bigger landfill? Basically, open up the box to any and all possible options because the cost — whether it’s Republic or AML or whoever — those costs aren’t going down any time soon. And it’s a challenge for everybody in Southeast and pretty much everybody ships their waste out.”
A new landfill could cost between $15 million and $20 million, Wetor said.
For Assembly Member Jim DeBord, the waste disposal rate hike is a prime example of the ballooning expenses the borough is facing for all its projects. “I don’t think the general public comprehends how much we are getting slammed on, not two or three or four percent increases, but 30, 40, 50, 60, 100% increases across the board on every project,” he said. “I hear people complain about where their tax dollars go. … It’s taking a lot more money to do a lot less services right now.”
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