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Searching for better income sources for Washington County The desperation of poor, rural counties can be appreciated. It seems rural governments are being called on to provide more and more services for the people but yet their income resources are severely limited. Washington County has turned to the idea of a solid waste landfill as a revenue generator for the county. We wish county officials would hold off for a little while and let's see if the mega German steel manufacturer ThyssenKrupp AG is going to build a $2.9 billion mill on the Mobile and Washington counties line at Calvert. If Alabama wins the mill over Louisiana, Washington County will benefit greatly from a mill at Calvert. A landfill's revenues might not be needed. Washington County officials have already signed papers with Advanced Disposal for the company to build a landfill capable of receiving up to 4,000 tons a day in the Charity Chapel area in the south end of the county. Former Probate Judge John Henry Armstrong, a landfill proponent, says the county could get up to $800,000 a year. Others estimated the income at $300,000 to $500,000. The county has already reportedly received $100,000 from Advanced Disposal. A public hearing was held on the subject Tuesday but it apparently served no real purpose other than to allow people- mostly opponents- to vent their feelings on the matter. It seems that the better time to hold a hearing would have been before papers where signed and before money was accepted. It may all be a done deal now. We suppose a landfill can be a good neighbor and we understand that they do have to abide by strict environmental regulations. But there is a negative stigma about them, too, no one will deny that, not even proponents. We know Washington County needs new revenue sources but we wish they had a better alternative for income than a landfill.
The ThyssenKrupp mill might be that alternative. But is it too late to wait and see, or to hold up the landfill project?
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