New tri-county landfill opening soon in Brown County

TOWN OF HOLLAND, Wis. (WBAY) - The Brown County South Landfill is expected to go online January 3, 2022 ahead of the closure of the Northeast Outagamie County Landfill in 2023.

It will be the third tri-county landfill to open. The Winnebago County Landfill closed around 2012, when the Outagamie County location opened.

The Brown County location is in the Town of Holland, near the division road along the Town of Wrightstown. Construction started in 2020 costing about $28 Million covered by fees paid to use the Outagamie County landfill. The final touches are being made this month, ahead of the opening in January.

“It doesn’t mean that the public can just come and use it. It’s going to be a little while to make sure we’re operating the way we need, to control the first layer that’s going in there,” said Mark Walter, the Business Development Manager for Brown county Port & Resource Recovery.

He explained the first 10 feet of the new landfill need to be filled with soft items, therefore, use will be limited for the first few months before people can drop off bigger waste.

Next year’s tipping fee is set for $53 per ton, and the landfill will take in tons of trash for at least the next 10 years.

“Our whole system, the three counties, generate like three-quarters of a million to 800,000 tons a year of garbage going into the landfill,” said Walter. “If it’s a 10-year life expectancy, you’re looking at eight, nine, 10 million tons of material going in there.”

However, Walter said the life expectancy is a moving target that could be up to 15 years if people limit their waste, specifically food waste. Walter said food waste made up nearly 15% of the waste in the entire state, according to a study from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

All three counties have about 40 years of capacity combined.

The Northwest Outagamie County Landfill is expected to go online in a few years and will run in conjunction with the Brown County South Landfill.

Walter said Brown County has more space for another landfill to open if needed.

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