July 5, 2019
T he C olumbia P ress
4
Hazmat: Center opens next month and it’s free to use
Continued from Page 1
The Department of Envi-
ronmental Quality provided
a $77,000 grant to offset its
requirements in construct-
ing the county’s $1.2 million
project.
First came a lease for the
property owned by the city of
Astoria across from Astoria
High School’s stadium and
adjacent to Recology’s land-
fill and transfer station on
Williamsport Road.
Construction began in Oc-
tober.
Because the facility is on a
former landfill, there were
many DEQ requirements, in-
cluding sinking beams more
than 70 feet deep to ensure
they went through the filled
land and into bedrock.
Next came installation of
methane detection piping be-
fore the concrete slab could
be laid. Then there was in-
stallation of a liner to prevent
any methane from seeping up
into the building. No methane
was detected during the in-
stallation. The concrete floor
was poured in early June.
The facility is a collabo-
ration between the county,
Recology Western Oregon,
the county’s cities and several
community groups.
Without it, county residents
have nowhere to take toxic
household products, which
means they could end up in
the regular trash stream, po-
tentially poisoning the envi-
Photos courtesy Michael McNickle
Above: The roof and exterior are about to be installed on
the county’s new Household Hazardous Waste Facility.
Right: Workers prepare to sink a piling 70 feet through the
landfill into bedrock.
ronment, or, worse dumped
directly into drains or onto
the ground.
Until the facility opens, the
county has an agreement
with Tillamook County that
allows Clatsop residents to
dispose of their waste at a
facility there. But that is, ad-
mittedly, a long way to go,
McNickle said. “Most people
now know we’re building our
own and holding on to
it.”
The county is mak-
ing it easy for residents to use
the facility. There will be no
charge and drivers don’t have
to get out of their vehicles. An
employee will remove the ma-
terial from the vehicle, assess
it and place it into the proper
container for destruction or
recycling, which will be done
The fire season for Clatsop
County began this week, ac-
cording to the Oregon De-
partment of Forestry.
Fire season is declared each
year when hazardous fire
conditions exist, including
dry, warm weather and abun-
dant woody debris.
A countywide burn ban
went into effect simultane-
ously. Open debris burning
is banned and burn barrels
require a burn permit, which
can be obtained through the
Oregon Department of For-
off-site. Very little will be
held at the facility overnight.
“The most exciting thing is
seeing where it is now from
where it was,” McNickle said
of the project. “It used to be
vacant property that was
unusable because of the old
landfill.”
Clatsop County joins rest of state in ‘fire season’
Know your options
Call 503-338-4075!
If you’re suffering from chronic pain in a
knee, hip or shoulder, our orthopedic
experts can help you set a plan to
improve your quality of life.
www.columbiamemorial.org/orthopedic-clinic
estry or your local fire depart-
ment, depending upon the
location of your residence.
Only metal barrels in good
condition with heavy mesh
screens that have holes no
larger than a quarter inch are
acceptable. A charged water
supply and hand tools are re-
quired to be on site.
State fire crews completed
initial wildland fire train-
ing late last month, many of
them at Camp Rilea.