SEWARD MONOFILL/TRANSFER FACILITY (SMF/TF)

(907) 224-5327

OPERATING HOURS

See our 'About Us' page, 'All Solid Waste Sites Locations, Contact Information & Hours'

Location
The SMF/TF is located at 3200 Dimond Blvd., 3 miles north of downtown Seward, in the NE ¼ of Sec. 28, T1N, R1E, S.M., AK. The current ADEC Inert Waste Permit, SWZA031-22, expires in April 2022. No ADEC permit is required to operate the transfer facility.

Background
The site was established by the City of Seward and operated as an open dump for many years. The KPB assumed site operations in 1974 and operated it as the Seward Landfill. Due to space limitations, in 1991 it was determined that the landfill should be relocated. Several locations were considered but all were either publicly opposed to or not suitable for landfill use. It was ultimately deemed the best course of action to close the landfill, open a transfer facility, and haul the MSW to the Central Peninsula Landfill (CPL) with daily operations contracted out. Initially, the majority of inert waste was hauled from Seward to the CPL but this soon proved too costly. The monofill began operating in 1997 as a cost effective alternative.

The site sits on a 10-acre KPB owned parcel and includes the closed landfill, SMF/TF, and buffer property. It serves about 5,000 year round residents from Seward to Moose Pass along with numerous summer fishing businesses and cruise ships.

Construction
In 1990 funding was appropriated through State of Alaska and ADEC Grants and KPB General Obligation Bonds to close out the old landfill and build a transfer facility. Construction consisted of a 6,000 square foot transfer building with a waste tipping area, a trailer bay, administrative space, a recycling room, a used oil collection tank, a hazardous waste storage container, a waste water evaporator and evaporator shed, a storage shed, a partially paved parking and driving areas, and stockpile and burial areas. The facility opened in 1992. No contracted construction was required for the monofill since the areas to be utilized were already well established.

The monofill is located along the edge of the Resurrection River in an area with a high water table and highly permeable soils. A dike was constructed along the river in 1979 and a 1,200-foot extension added in 1991 to protect the closed landfill from flooding during heavy rains.

Operations
An Operator under contract with the KPB operates the transfer facility and monofill concurrently. The Operator is responsible for supplying the equipment, manpower, and supplies necessary to perform all operation and maintenance duties of the facility in a safe and orderly manner. Contract services include, but are not limited to, monitoring activities during operating hours, inert waste and recyclables management, screening incoming waste, waste transfer to the CPL, conducting litter cleanup, snow removal, and access road maintenance. The contract duration is five years with a renewal option of three years, which is subject to contract compliance, the agreement of both parties, and annual approval of funding.

Waste Segregation
One of the many facets to managing waste is the proper disposal and handling of a wide variety of materials. Because not all materials are managed in the same way, it is important to separate them into categories, each with its own disposal location.

Tipping Floor: MSW
Both public and commercial haulers deposit MSW onto the tipping floor of the transfer building where it is loaded into a transfer trailer and ultimately hauled to the CPL. The Operator screens the incoming waste prior to loading the transfer trailer and segregates materials not suitable for burial in the lined cell at the CPL. Types of materials accepted include animal carcasses, electronics, fish waste, kitchen trash, small quantities of lawn clippings and leaves, etc. An estimated 4,000 to 5,000 tons of MSW are transported to the CPL each year.

Inert Waste Monofill: C/D, Metals & Woody Debris/Brush
Inert waste is segregated in these three separate piles. An estimated 3,100 cubic yards is consumed annually in the C/D cell with a projected life of 25 more years.

*C/D: Both the public and commercial haulers deposit this waste stream directly into an unlined cell where it is ultimately compacted and buried. Types of materials accepted include inert waste such as building materials, concrete, dry wall, furniture, roofing material, tires, treated wood, etc.

*Metals: Accepted materials include appliances, automobiles, copper, iron, tanks, etc. Items with engines must have all fluids drained and gas tanks and batteries removed (if applicable) prior to disposal. Refrigerators and freezers are either placed in the C/D cell or stockpiled with other metals and shipped to recycle markets after refrigerants are removed. The removal and hauling of this waste stream is the sole responsibility of the Operator.   

*Woody Debris/Brush: Also known as the ‘brush pile,’ the stockpiled material is periodically burned, which saves space for this waste stream from burial. Accepted materials include branches, Christmas trees, large quantities of un-bagged grass clippings and leaves, tree stumps (see site attendant), untreated lumber without nails or hardware, etc. 

Recycling Containers
The SMF/TF has containers located outside the baler building for collecting aluminum cans, corrugated cardboard, container glass, mixed paper, newspaper, and PETE #1 twist top containers and HDPE #2 plastics. A recycling container is also available for cardboard, aluminum cans, and glass at the Seward Boat Harbor. The onsite management of recyclables is the sole responsibility of the Operator.

Hazardous & Misc. Waste
Used oil and lead acid and household batteries are accepted daily. Management of these materials is the same as the Homer Transfer Facility.

Four HWCE are conducted throughout the year by the KPB’s hazardous waste management contractor who manages the events and ships the waste out of Alaska for management.

Disposal Fees
SMF/TF does not have commercial disposer scales. Commercial vehicles with more than five cubic yards are charged for specific waste items based on volume with a 250 cubic yard limit per job. Households are not charged disposal fees.  Households are charged for specific items.

Fees apply to hazardous waste management from businesses that generate very small quantities of this waste stream; households are free.

Environmental Monitoring
A KPB contractor samples four monitoring wells around the monofill perimeter annually in accordance with the ADEC permit.

Waste water produced from daily tipping floor operations is collected in a 3,000 gallon underground storage tank. A hauler contracted with the Borough hauls it off site.