By James Massara
Executives and legal counsel for Rumpke Waste and Recycling Services met with Crawford County Commissioner Doug Weisenauer on Wednesday to discuss the possible transition of ownership of the current lease on the Crawford County landfill.
Rumpke Executive Andrew Rumpke said the company is interested in obtaining control of current lease holder Santek.
Rumpke said the company is working on a final agreement with Santek and needed the commissioners to tell him what the public steps were necessary, as well as what the possible timeline for the transfer may be.
Weisenauer said there is a provision in the lease that allows its transfer from one company to another and as soon as the county receives bonds and insurance documentation from Rumpke, then the process could begin to move forward.
James Thaxton, general counsel for Rumpke, said obtaining that information would not be difficult.
Rumpke said he would like to see the transition take place by March 1, which Thaxton added would be because of necessary construction projects that need to take place at the landfill site.
If the transfer does take place, current landfill employees would go through the formal hiring process used by Rumpke Services, but barring any unforeseen circumstances, Andrew Rumpke said he would like to have those with experience to continue the job.
“There’s a good group of people who have been working there for a long time,” Rumpke said. “We would need people to run the site.”
Weisenauer said the Crawford County landfill was the only Ohio entity owned by Santek, and he believes Santek wanted to focus on business in other parts of the country where Santek operates, particularly in the south.
Rumpke said his company has worked in waste management in Ohio for 85 years, has eight landfills in Ohio, including one in Richland County, and multiple recycling facilities.
Rumpke Waste and Recycling Services is based in Hamilton County in southeast Ohio.
Commissioners Jenny Vermillion and Mo Ressallat were absent due to illness.