Proposal calls for waste transfer station when Countryside landfill closes

Operators of the Countryside landfill in Grayslake are proposing replacing it with a waste transfer station when it closes in coming years.

An overview by Waste Management Inc. also envisions a recycling drop off center at the site, east of Route 83 and north of Peterson Road, to replace the village’s current program at its public works yard.

Waste Management officials on Wednesday presented a “high-level view” of the proposed waste transfer station, which would be built directly south of the existing landfill, according to the Lake County Board’s planning, building, zoning and environment committee.

Initial information is intended to be an introduction to the idea before filing a detailed application, which could happen early next year. That application would then be reviewed by county and state authorities in a roughly yearlong approval process.

Waste Management owns 350 acres in the area and has operated Countryside for at least 30 years. The company wants to build the Meadowview material transfer facility to replace landfill operations, which are expected to close in 2027.

A waste transfer station is a temporary holding facility where collected trash is deposited and sorted before being taken to a landfill or another transfer station. Meadowview would be a 31,450-square-foot building that could handle up to 1,000 tons of municipal and other types of waste per day.

That equates to roughly 167 typical residential waste collection trucks per day, which is comparable to the traffic at Countryside, according to Chris Rubak, senior engineering manager with Waste Management.

That does not count about 40 trucks needed to transfer the materials offsite, he added.

A 3,500 square foot recycling building to accept household materials, such as electronics, textiles, shoes and food scraps, is also part of the proposal.

Both facilities would have green building features, including 18,000 square feet of solar panels.

“We would actually, for most of the year, be a net power exporter to the grid,” Rubak said.

Other green building features in the proposal include white membrane roofs for heat reduction, translucent panels and skylights to reduce lighting requirements, and bird-friendly materials.

“I feel you’ve been very responsible with this design,” Lake County Board and committee member Marah Altenberg said. “I think this is a solidly thought-out project for the next chapter of operations,“ she added.

A county required “life-cycle assessment” of the facility showed it would reduce carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide emissions and net energy consumption.

As such, the facility is deemed to be “superior to the current system” and satisfies the 2019 Lake County Solid Waste Management Plan, according to presented information.

This would be the second transfer station in Lake County. The first was approved about 10 years ago at Route 120 and Porter Drive. It’s operated by Waste Connections, parent company of Groot Industries.

Walter Willis, executive director of the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County, said he expects a planning update in the fall.

A siting application filed with the county starts the review process involving significantly more detailed information than presented Wednesday.

Materials would be available for public review ahead of a public hearing. Waste Management would have to meet nine siting criteria including the need for the facility.