Coffin Butte: A Mountain Full of Trash

Join the fight to stop the dangerous expansion of the landfill.

Current Updates and News

Benton County Planning Commission is accepting testimony prior to their decision on the landfill expansion!

This means NOW is the time to voice your opposition. The record is open and the hearing starts Tuesday, April 29 with the possibility of being continued on May 1 and May 6.

If the Republic Services is granted their expansion,

The landfill's yearly intake cap of 1.1 million tons will go away, meaning Republic will fill it even faster and soon request another expansion
Waste from outside Benton County will continue to be shipped in, imposing an environmental liability on locals for generations to come
Leachate runoff will continue to get worse, finding its way into the drinking water of local residents and farther afield

Help us protect our neighbors in Benton County! Click here to view a detailed testimony guide from VNEQS.

Proposed Solution

Solution #1: Support Valley Neighbors for Environmental Quality and Safety (VNEQS) in opposing the landfill expansion.

Click here to get up to speed from VNEQS.

Solution #2: Help Beyond Toxics pass SB 726 (Monitoring Landfill Methane Emissions).

Click here to learn how you can help.

Take Action

Support VNEQS and submit testimony! The comment period is OPEN and now is the time to submit written testimony. You do not have to be a Benton County (or Oregon!) resident to submit testimony.

Click here to learn how to submit testimony to Benton County.

Contact your senator and tell them to pass SB 726!

Click here to learn more.

Recent News

EPA inspection uncovered methane leaks at Benton County landfill
By Nathan Wilk (KLCC) - Jan. 18, 2025

Marion County’s move from incineration to landfill illustrates the problems with both methods of trash disposal, featuring an interview with Lisa Arkin, Beyond Toxics Exec. Director and Senator Sara Gelser Blouin - By Allison Frost (Oregon Public Broadcasting, Think Out Loud radio)

Resources

Webinar: Future of Benton County and Coffin Butte

2024 EPA Coffin Butte Inspection Report Summary

Full EPA Report: "Clean Air Act Partial Compliance Evaluation Inspection Report"

Coffin Butte Landfill began as a dumpsite for Adair Village, a World War II airbase. After the war, the dump was run by a local family who sold it to Valley Landfills, Inc. in 1975. In 2005, Valley Landfills, Inc. was purchased by Republic Services, the 2nd largest waste management company in the United States.

Since then, the company has steadily increased the amount of trash landfilled each year, and imports trash from all over western and central Oregon as well as Washington.

Grassroots Opposition

In 2021, Republic Services applied to expand the area of the landfill by 30% and substantially increase their ability to add new areas to receive trash. In addition, their application contained a proposal to build the landfill site across Coffin Butte Road, essentially closing the primary ingress and egress for local residents.

Facing the prospect of more garbage, closure of a critical road for fire evacuation, and the already burdensome air pollution from the existing facility, members of the Soap Creek Valley gathered to organize a resistance to the Coffin Butte Landfill Expansion.

The newly formed Valley Neighbors for Environmental Quality and Safety or VNEQS, led a stiff grassroots resistance and increased community awareness around landfill issues. Their efforts substantially impacted Benton County’s decision to deny the Coffin Butte Expansion. Republic Services is attempting to expand again this year!

This map shows the two main exits from Soap Creek Valley, Coffin Butte Road and Tampico Road. The proposed landfill expansion would close Coffin Butte Road, leaving residents with a single evacuation route that could easily be blocked by fires.

Beyond Toxics and Coffin Butte Landfill

Communities around the Coffin Butte Landfill sought our assistance to help stop a plan to expand the landfill by 30% and understand the landfill's toxic impact.

Collaborating with the community, our research uncovered alarming methane leaks and millions of gallons of landfill leachate containing high levels of PFAS discharged into the Willamette River every year.

By filing public records requests with the State, we learned the Oregon DEQ has neglected to scrutinize and update Coffin Butte's air quality permit since it was issued in 2009, making it nearly 10 years out of date.

We successfully filed complaints to prompt state and federal action for compliance. In addition to seeking lasting policy change, Beyond Toxics also hosted a community-wide town hall attended by over 80 people and canvassed over 400 homes in the community closest to the landfill to better understand the community's experience of living downwind from a large waste dump.

Coffin Butte's methane emissions contribute significantly to global warming. Addressing these leaks is vital in mitigating climate change risks. Additionally, ending the practice of leachate dumping in Oregon rivers is crucial for safeguarding drinking water, salmon, and aquatic ecosystems from harmful, bio-persistant pollutants like PFAS, the “forever chemical.”

Coffin Butte is located about 5 miles north of Corvallis near the community of Adair Village. The landfill is Oregon’s 2nd largest landfill behind Columbia Ridge in Arlington, Oregon.

Coffin Butte Landfill Routinely Under EPA Investigation

In June 2022, the EPA performed an announced inspection of the Coffin Butte Landfill to ensure the facility was operating in compliance with methane emissions standards. By law, Oregon’s largest landfills are required to install gas control and collection systems. Landfill operators are required to inspect the landfill for leaks four times a year and report any leaks to the Department of Environmental quality.

Despite landfill operators knowing the inspection was going to happen, and having an opportunity to make sure the facility was in full compliance with methane capture regulations, the EPA nonetheless found 61 methane leaks exceeding the allowable limit of 500 parts per million.

Despite these regulations, the 2022 EPA report found 61 methane leaks exceeding the legal limit of 500 parts per million, with some exceeding 50,000ppm! Methane leaks of that size are highly flammable and even explosive, a serious safety concern an state grappling with wildfires.

A report by Valley Landfills, Inc., now a subsidiary of Republic Services, claimed to only find six leaks.

In 2024, Beyond Toxics and Industrious Labs submitted a FOIA request to obtain a report the EPA completed in June 2024. The 2024 EPA inspection reported 41 methane leaks as high as 200x the 500ppm limit.

This is ongoing documentation of Coffin Butte Landfill's egregious environmental violations.

Click here to view a recent project by Carbon Mapper that documents Coffin Butte's exceedingly large methane emissions.

Worker Safety

Several workers and a union for mechanics have flagged safety concerns to regulators and Benton County Commissioners. Their concerns have cited expired personal protective equipment, lack of areas to wash hands and contaminated clothing, as well as unsafe practices for disposing of carcinogenic materials.

The union went on strike in September 2023 and returned to work in November 2023 in order to provide for their families through the winter season. Employees have stated that little has been done to remedy their health and safety concerns as of March 2024.