Location needs to be ready to go by 2012

By Michael King
Post-Crescent staff writer

MENASHA — For nearly 30 years, trucks loaded with biosolids have departed almost daily from the Neenah-Menasha sewage treatment plant at 101 Garfield Ave. destined for farm fields west of Oshkosh.

Since it is illegal to land spread sludge whenever the ground is frozen, the dewatered biosolids, considered a beneficial soil additive or fertilizer, are stored temporarily in a large building until the ground thaws.

That massive building, built 20 years ago, is located at Gizmo Farms, a large Town of Omro farm run by Bob and Jim Potratz, that has been handling biosolids from the regional sewage treatment plant since the late 1970s.

Some time ago, the Potratz brothers notified the Neenah-Menasha Sewerage Commission they want to end their current 10-year hauling and disposal contract when it expires at the end of 2011, forcing officials to begin looking for a new site.

The "most desirable option" is the old Winnebago County landfill on Snell Road on the north side of Oshkosh, according to Randy Much, president of Midwest Contract Operations, the private management company that has operated the Neenah-Menasha sewage treatment plant since 1988.

"Everything came back that land application is still the most cost-effective approach," Much said.

Gizmo Farms, which also handles biosolids from the Oshkosh wastewater treatment plant, is not interested in selling the building, which is located on one of their original farms. The Potratz brothers, who did not return phone calls seeking comment, apparently want to use that building for something else.

Much said the commission is looking beyond the next decade and "wants to end up owning the building so we can have that available long term and we're not tied to just one sludge hauler."

Commissioners recently reviewed an updated biosolids storage building site study that explored several options, including a hauling-disposal contract with a mega farm in Calumet County or with Veolia Environmental Services, a private refuse hauler and landfill operator that handles biosolids in other parts of the U.S.

The commission has authorized Much to approach the county's Solid Waste Management Board to explore the concept further.

"We're taking a look at some area of our closed Snell Road site," said John Rabe, director of solid waste for Winnebago County. "This is just a possible location for sludge biosolid storage during the winter months when land spreading is not option."

"I've not gotten anything to warrant putting on an agenda," said Rabe, who is waiting for a formal report before putting it on the board's Nov. 18 meeting agenda.

The county has two landfills about two miles apart on Oshkosh's north side, one active and the other closed.

The Snell Road landfill takes up about half of a more than 200-acre site just south of the Oshkosh Correctional Institution. It has been closed and capped since 1991. The only activity remaining on site is an electric generation facility fueled by landfill gases and groundwater monitoring required by the state Department of Natural Resources.

Steve Brand, superintendent of Oshkosh water and wastewater utilities, is watching the situation closely. He has been conferring with Much and Neenah-Menasha's consultant, McMahon, and "talking with them also as a potential partner in this," he said. "But we're just in the general investigatory stages right now."

Oshkosh has a contract with Gizmo Farms through 2015, including renewal options.

Since land spreading of sludge is "absolutely" the most cost-effective disposal method, Brand said Oshkosh wants to work "cooperatively with Neenah-Menasha and McMahon (consulting engineers) on development of a conceptual plan."

Taking a long-term view of biosolids disposal only makes sense, Brand said. "Any time we can work with other communities to try and get economies of scale and work together on improvements, we certainly want to do that."

Much said the landfill site "is very attractive" and would be a good location for storing and hauling to rural Winnebago County farm fields. If Oshkosh were to build its own building at the Snell Road landfill in the future, they could bid hauling contracts together to save money and also explore other options for selling the biosolids with a larger volume if a cost-effective use were developed.

"It allows us to stay close to Oshkosh to work jointly," Much said. "This gives us the option for them to join us if there's economies of scale down the road."

Rabe said the study is "very preliminary" and he has not received "anything formal from McMahon, Neenah-Menasha or Oshkosh to take it up with our board yet.

"It would certainly have to be worth our while to consider it," Rabe said. "There's certainly going to be some concerns, but those have to be addressed or considered before we move forward."

Since the contract with Gizmo terminates at the end of 2011, and DNR approval would be needed to site a biosolids storage building, Much said, "We really need to find something in the next six to eight months if we're going to get it constructed by the time the contract ends."

Michael King: 920-729-6622, ext. 33, or mking@postcrescent.com