Nearly $8M in capital improvement projects completed at landfill in Merced County
Nearly $8 million in capital improvement projects have been completed at a landfill on Merced County’s west side, according to the Merced County Association of Governments.
The completion of several projects at the Billy Wright landfill just west of Los Banos was celebrated with a ribbon cutting and tour of the facility on May 19.
One of the projects complete this spring is a new scale house at the entrance to the site. The site also features two new scales which are used for weighing both incoming and outgoing vehicles, according to a Merced County Association of Governments news release.
Work on the new scale house began about one year ago and replaces the previous one which was built just after the landfill’s opening in 1973. Construction of the new scale house was impacted by supply chain delays of much of the materials, according to the release.
The previous scale house had one scale for both the incoming and outgoing vehicles which led to long wait times. The facility’s new scale house and outbound scale were put into service in January 2023 and the old scale house and scale were demolished. The incoming scale was completed and put into service last month.
The recyclable and organic transfer areas used to collect materials from local areas including Los Banos, Gustine and Dos Palos also received upgrades, according to the release. From the location, the materials are transferred from residential collection trucks and placed into transfer trailers to be delivered and processed outside the area. The improvement project included placing a fabric structure over the materials protecting them from weather and helping to reduce the amount of materials blown around by wind.
Also included in the latest improvement project and completed this spring was the construction of the site’s next landfill disposal cell. The cell, constructed of multiple layers of synthetic material and soil in an effort to protect the environment, spans close to 7 acres providing more than 1 million cubic yards of space to hold public waste, according to the release. The cell is said to provide nearly three year’s worth of capacity at the site.
After receiving approval for use by the Regional Water Quality Control Board, the cell was put into use and the facility began placing waste in the cell last month.
“The investments made at the Billy Wright landfill over the past year have been significant and demonstrate our Agency’s commitment to providing the highest level of service to the communities on the west side of Merced County,” said MCAG Executive Director Stacie Guzman in the news release.
Planning for the next cell at the Billy Wright landfill, which will be needed by 2026, is already in the works, according to the release.
Additional information about the disposal sites in Merced and Los Banos can be found at the Merced County Regional Waste Management Authority website.
