Utah DEQ News

Holden Town Landfill: Solid Waste Facility Fact Sheet: Class IVb Landfill

Facility Owner

Holden Town Corporation

Facility Operator

Holden Town Corporation

Property Owner

N/A

Facility Location

Township 19 South, Range 4 West, Section 35. The site is located ½ mile north off U.S. Highway 50 at 1500 East Whiskey Creek Road in Holden, Millard County.

Remaining Capacity

Acres: 40
Tons: 1,600
Cubic Yards: N/A
Years: 20

Waste Accepted

Construction/demolition waste, yard waste, inert waste, petroleum-contaminated soil, and dead animals.

Waste Excluded

Municipal household waste, hazardous waste, PCB’s, industrial waste, tires, and liquids of more than 5 gallons.

Permit Effective Date

May 15, 2015 through May 15, 2025

Facility Contact

Ross Stevens
Holden Town Councilman
P.O. Box 360127
Holden, UT 84636
Phone: (435) 795-2213

DEQ Contact

Matt Sullivan
Utah Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control
PO Box 144880
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-4880
Phone: (801) 536-0241
Email: msullivan@utah.gov

Local Health Department

Central Utah Public Health Department
70 Westview Drive
Richfield, Utah 84701
Phone: (435) 896-5451

Facility Documents

Draft Permit (359.75 KB)
Permit Application (20.02 MB)
Public Notice (16.6 KB)
Fact Sheet (35.08 KB)

Comments

For more information, please contact Matt Sullivan (801) 536-0241.

Wildfire’s Impact on Our Environment

Fire Crews at the Dollar Ridge Fire in Utah.

Crews prepare to battle the Dollar Ridge Fire in Utah. Photo courtesy of Utah Wildfire Info.

By Jared Mendenhall

Widespread wildfires in summertime —and, now, even springtime—are rapidly becoming the “new normal” in the American West. Along with the destruction and loss of forest caused by blazes, there are immediate and long-term environmental impacts that dramatically affect vital resources.

Dollar Ridge Fire, Ashley NF, UT, 2018. Photo courtesy of Utah Wildfire Info.

Air Quality

When forests burn, large amounts of smoke are released into the atmosphere. This smoke is made up of a complex soup of gases, microscopic particles, and water vapor.

The particulates that make up the smoke tend to be quite small, generally less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, or approximately 1/70th the size of a human hair. The technical term is PM2.5, or particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers. These particles are so small our bodies have a difficult time filtering them out of our airways. They lodge deep in the lungs, compromise our breathing and stress our hearts. In addition, they can also irritate our eyes and cause runny noses. People with chronic respiratory or cardiovascular issues are at the highest risk of health problems during a wildfire.

Smoke pollution from fires can originate close to the fire or travel from distant blazes. Smaller local fires tend to have less energy pushing the smoke plume into the atmosphere. In these cases, the smoke hangs around the general vicinity of the burn. Massive blazes in places like Northern California and Oregon have a lot of energy. The smoke plumes from these fires are pushed high in the atmosphere and travel along the prevailing winds. Once the plume cools, it settles. The valleys of Northern Utah are popular resting spots for this smoke.

Finally, the incomplete burning of forests produces carbon monoxide. Its levels are highest during the smoldering stages of a fire and can cause various risks to human health.

Wildfires have wide ranging effects on water quality for years and decades after a burn. Photo courtesy of Utah Wildfire Info.

Water Quality

Wildfires can affect the physical, chemical, and biological quality of streams, rivers, lakes and reservoirs. These changes are noticeable for years and even decades after a fire.

The first and greatest impact of wildfires is a significant increase in stormwater runoff. With the loss of vegetation during a wildfire, the soil becomes hydrophobic (tending to repel or failing to mix with water). Under normal conditions, plant life slows precipitation down once it hits the landscape and lets it gradually seep into the ground. After a fire, foliage-free soil doesn’t absorb water easily. These burn scars increase runoff and provide a pathway for the transport of debris and sediment to rivers, lakes, and reservoirs.

Along with the debris, elevated levels of nutrient concentrations increase in waterbodies. Nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations from burned foliage run into the water and lead to algal blooms resulting in fluctuations in oxygen or oxygen depletion in downstream waterbodies.

Lastly, post-fire flash floods introduce high levels of heavy metals from ash, soils, and geologic sources into waterways.

Firefighters take a break while fighting the Dollar Ridge Fire. Photo courtesy of Utah Wildfire Info.

Drinking Water

In 2017, a wildfire near the resort town of Brian Head in Southern Utah burned 75,000 acres, forced the evacuation of more than 1,500 residents, and destroyed more than 100 homes.

As the blaze spread from the small ski resort, it moved into the Panguitch’s watershed. Smoke and ash contaminated a large portion of the town’s drinking-water sources at five springs in the mountains. Culinary water was quickly diverted from the five springs, and residents started drawing water from the one well in town. Engineers from the Division of Drinking Water coordinated efforts with multiple state and federal agencies to bring the springs back online.

This year, a flash flood passed over the Panguitch City watershed and damaged one of the spring collection boxes. This forced city officials to issue a boil order until further repairs could be made.

With about half of the water supply in the southwestern United States coming from sources in the forest, scenarios like the one in Panguitch are becoming more common. Burn areas are prone to greater rates of erosion, increasing the downstream accumulation of sediment in rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. This increases the potential impacts from past, current, and future wildfires on the quantity and quality of water in the area. Wildfires can compromise water quality both during active burning, and for months and years after the fire has been contained.

In the end, the best way to mitigate the environmental impacts of wildfires is to prevent them. To lift a line from Smokey, “Only you can prevent forest fires.” Learn about fire safety at the U.S. Forest Services fire page.

I am a public information officer for DEQ and a former marketer and magazine editor. Follow me on Instagram @Jarv801.

Danger Advisory Lifted for Lincoln Marina

Lincoln Marina bloom

The Utah County Health Department reopened the Lincoln Marina today after two consecutive weeks of test results showed cyanobacteria cell-count concentrations had dropped below the threshold for a Danger Advisory. The Lincoln Marina continues to exceed the recreation health-based threshold for primary contact with water and has been placed under a Warning Advisory.

Utah Department of Health/Utah Department of Environmental Quality Health Advisory Guidance recommends two consecutive weeks of sampling data to downgrade a harmful algal bloom (HAB) health advisory on a waterbody.

Lincoln Marina sampling data show the cyanobacteria cell-count concentrations are now below the 10 million cells per milliliter (cells/ml) threshold for a Danger Advisory:

July 16, 2018 sampling results: 3,420,881 cells/ml
July 9, 2018 sampling results: 7,898 cells/ml

July 16, 2018, cell-count densities and microcystin levels of 17.4 micrograms per liter (µg/L) still exceed the recreation health-based threshold, warranting a Warning Advisory for the marina.

A Warning Advisory indicates a moderate relative probability of acute health risk, cell-count densities of 20,000 – 10 million cells per milliliter (cells/ml), microcystin levels of 4-2,000 micrograms per liter (µg/L), or anatoxin-a levels above non-detect. Advisory actions:

Do not swim or water ski
Do not ingest the water
Keep pets and livestock away
Clean fish well and discard guts
Avoid areas of scum when boating

The Division of Water Quality (DWQ) continues to collect samples on Utah Lake and other water bodies across the state. For updates on harmful algal blooms in Utah, please visit habs.utah.gov.

Sandy ONE Water Way: Your One-Stop Shop for All Your Water Needs

By Kim Bell, Guest Blogger

DEQ invites guest bloggers to share their thoughts on issues that impact our environment. We appreciate their insights and the opportunity to broaden the conversation with others in the community.

Sego Lily Gardens in Sandy City

Public utilities maintain waterlines, protect drinking water, and coordinate, plan, inspect, review, and construct capital improvement projects that deliver safe, clean water to our homes and businesses. In order to do so, they need an adequate water supply and quality water sources to make that happen. That’s why Sandy City’s Public Utilities department launched a new public outreach initiative called ONE Water Way…because all of us need to do our part to protect one of our most precious resources: our water.

The goal of Sandy ONE Water Way is to educate the public on good stewardship of our waterways —from the protection of watersheds that provide us with drinking water to groundwater source protection to stream water-quality improvements to water conservation — and all other “ways” we can enjoy, protect, and enhance our water environment.

Improved understanding of the ways water quality and water quantity impact each other is key to reducing consumption, employing water conservation principles and practices, ensuring the quality of our drinking water, and preventing water pollution. The Sandy ONE Water Way program provides Sandy City residents with the tools to become better stewards of our water.

Here are a few of the resources we offer through the Sandy ONE Water Way program on our web.

Water Watch (formerly Aquahawk)

Click for larger view

We all know how important it is to conserve water, but sometimes it’s hard to know how much we’re actually using. Sandy City’s Water Watch program can help. The program lets you set alerts for your water usage, see how much water you use in a day or an hour, set a monthly water budget, and control expenses — all for free.

Water Watch lets you specify an amount of water (gallons) or an estimated bill amount you don’t want to exceed. If your water consumption or bill amount has exceeded or is projected to exceed the threshold value, Water Watch will send you a notification.

Slow the Flow, Save H₂O

Utah is one of the top five driest states in the nation and also one of the fastest growing. Our population will nearly double by 2065! The need to use water efficiently is critical for meeting our future water needs. Governor Herbert challenged Utah to improve efficiency by 25 percent by 2025.

The Governor’s Water Conservation Team (GWCT), established in 2000, consists of conservation representatives from the Utah Division of Water Resources, the five largest water conservancy districts in Utah…and you!

Slow the Flow Save H2O, funded by the GWCT, is an education campaign to raise awareness, empower residents, and connect Utahns to tools and resources for water conservation. This campaign is part of a bigger statewide movement, including independent regional and local programs, to promote sustainable water use.

Starting May 21, 2018, FREE water audits became available through the Slow the Flow program to residents across the state. Utah State University (USU) water auditors will come to your home and check your sprinklers for uniform distribution and point out any adjustments you need to make so your system is more efficient. Sign up online to get a FREE water check if you live in Salt Lake City, Sandy City, Eagle Mountain, Iron County, or Washington County. Call 801-771-1677 to sign up for a water check in Weber, Davis, Morgan, and Summit counties, or contact your local USU County Extension Office for information and materials on conducting your own water check.

Sego Lily Gardens and Water Conservation

Sego Lily Gardens

If you save water, you save money, energy, and help save the environment. Sandy City has its own water conservation demonstration garden — Sego Lily Gardens. Come visit us at 1472 East Sego Lily Drive (10200 South) and learn how to use water conservation principles and practices to create a beautiful and water-wise landscape. The gates are open from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and admission is free.

Check out our Water Conservation Tips and USU’s Water Check Fact Sheets to make the most efficient use of your sprinkler system. Remember, the Sandy City Sprinkling Ordinance prohibits watering between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

Keep It Pure

Whether you picnic, hike, ski, snowboard, mountain bike, rock climb or simply enjoy the beauty of our canyons, remember that what you see in the watershed today you may drink tomorrow.

A watershed is a geographical or geological area of land that catches the rain and snow drained by a single river system. All surface and groundwater that contributes to a stream is part of that watershed system. This water is our drinking water!

Various canyons along the Wasatch Front are an important source of our drinking water and are designated “Protected Watershed Areas.” The cleaner our water is at its source, the easier and less costly to treat. Our activities and actions, both on the hillsides and around the water source impact the quality of our drinking water. Regulations govern our activity in these areas so this vital source of drinking water will be kept clean. The Keep It Pure program reminds us of the ways we can help protect our watershed, like not swimming or camping in protected watershed areas or bringing dogs into these watersheds.

Stormwater: We All Live Downstream

Stormwater comes from rain, snow, hail, and sleet. When “storm” runoff enters the storm drain system through the gutters along the roads outside your homes, it flows untreated into the waters we use for swimming, fishing, and other recreational activities.

Pollutants can collect in stormwater runoff and make their way into our waters. Pet waste, fertilizer, oil, and plant debris are picked up as they enter the city’s catch basins. From there, this untreated water flows through a massive system of pipes and channels through the Jordan River, Little Cottonwood Creek, Dry Creek, and eventually to the Great Salt Lake. Anything dumped, dropped on the ground that makes its way into the gutter pollutes our stormwater, which in turn pollutes our waterways.

Sandy ONE Water Way

Our commitment to our community is to ensure water quality, water conservation, and water protection. We hope that the tools and resources provided to Sandy City residents through our Sandy ONE Water Way portal helps members of the public learn how they can help us protect our water resources. Together, we can make a difference.

This blog provides just a taste of all we have to offer through our web portal. Please visit us at Sandy ONE Water Way for more information and tips. You can learn more about your public utilities department and the services we provide by visiting our Sandy City web page or the web page of your local public utility. We proudly work together to provide quality utility services to our customers!

My experience includes working in government finance, public outreach/education and public relations. I implement strategic communication and public outreach messaging for water-related issues. I manage regulatory, financial, technical and public engagement encounters delivering improved efficiencies, reliability, and environmental stewardship. I received my Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix.

Price River Oil Spill

A tanker truck carrying crude oil on Highway 6 rolled over on the evening of July 12, 2018, and released approximately 750-1,000 gallons of crude oil into the Price River. The Department of Environmental Quality joined emergency personnel at the scene to contain the spill and protect water quality in the Price River.

Emergency crews set up absorbent booms to trap oil before it heads downstream.

Carbon County Emergency Management (CCEM) staff put absorbent booms and pads in place overnight to minimize the spread of crude oil and gasoline. CCEM also contacted the local irrigation company and asked it to divert all possible water to the upstream canals, which lowered the Price River and kept the oil from being flushed farther down the river.

Price River Spill Activities July 18, 2018, to July 20, 2018

Envirocare completed one pass of cleaning for the entire contaminated area down to the Carbon Avenue Bridge on July 18, 2018. Very little contamination was found on the lower stretch of the river. A visual inspection check at the Wellington boom made by Southeast Health Department staff found no crude oil contamination at or below the boom. Envirocare made a second “polishing” cleanup pass along the entire river corridor on July 19, 2018.

DEQ’s Division of Drinking Water (DDW) received final lab confirmation on samples collected July 16, 17 and 18, 2018. None of the samples collected from the Green River Water Treatment Plant pre-treatment holding ponds, plant influent, or finished drinking water contained oil and grease or volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The drinking-water plant operator will collect a final confirmation sample on July 20, 2018.

The DEQ District Engineer will collect water samples on July 20, 2018, at six locations along the Price River, and DWQ staff will pick up and deliver the samples to the lab that evening. Sample results should be available early next week.

Price River Spill Activities July 17, 2018

Crews remove oil globules. Click for larger view.

A significant flash flood on the evening of July 16, 2018, breached the lower containment boom at the Pilling Trailer Court. Since the cleanup was not complete, some contamination spread downstream. Cleanup crews found sporadic crude down to the Carbon Avenue Bridge. While the amount was small, this section of the Price River parallels the Price River Recreation Trail. Based on the proximity of the contamination to the trail, cleanup was extended two miles to the Carbon Avenue Bridge. Since the waxy crude is primarily globules and small chunks, crews are picking these up by hand.

Cleanup today will focus on the 100 North Bridge to the Carbon Avenue Bridge in the morning and 100 north to the Pilling Trailer Court in the afternoon. Significant contamination remains on “The Island” below Gordon Creek, and crews will clean up that area later today. Most of the cleanup should be completed today with some “polishing work” tomorrow, July 19, 2018.

Staff from the Division of Drinking Water (DDW) were at the Green River City drinking water intake on July 16, 2018, to collect a comprehensive suite of samples from holding ponds and treatment plant effluent. DDW is not expecting detectable results, but sampling is the only way to know for sure. DDW hopes to have final results late Thursday, July 19, 2018.

Price River Spill Activities July 15, 2018-July 16, 2018

Samples collected on July 13, 2018, showed gasoline range organics (GRO) levels were generally below limits downstream from the spill location. Diesel range organics (DRO) levels were elevated about 1000 feet downstream, but this was not unexpected given the small amount of oil residue and large chunks of crude in the water during sampling. DRO levels dropped sharply thereafter, which shows the oil residue is being diluted as the river runs downstream. DEQ Division of Water Quality (DWQ) crews will collect follow-up samples on July 18 or 19, 2018.

Sampling the Price River following the spill. Click for larger view.

DEQ’s Division of Drinking Water (DDW) conducted sampling on July 16, 2018, above the Green River drinking- water intake. The plant is located approximately 100 miles downstream from the spill location, and cleanup crews estimate that less than one barrel (42 gallons) of oil flowed downstream towards the Green River. DDW wants to ensure that water entering and exiting the plant meets applicable drinking-water standards. Sample results should be available by July 20, 2018.

Cleanup near the spill site is proceeding well. Contractors estimate that all but a half mile of the river corridor has been “rough-cleaned” with at least one cleaning pass. Cleanup crews will focus on the last half mile on July 17, 2018, and begin a “polishing run” for the entire area of the river contaminated by the spill. Work is expected to be completed by July 18, 2018.

Price River Spill Activities July 13, 2018-July 14, 2018

Debris began to clog the diversion diverting water upstream on the morning of July 13, 2018. A five-minute planned water surge to clear the debris, unfortunately, blew out the first containment berm, flushing the crude oil downstream. A new containment berm was hurriedly placed before the oil progressed too far downstream, but by then, three miles of the river were to some extent contaminated by the spill.

Booms contain oil and debris. Click for larger view.

The cleanup contractor, Envirocare, arrived early in the morning of July 13, 2018, and focused initially on collecting the crude oil on the bridge where the crash occurred. Thick oil also landed in trees, bushes, rocks, and embankments. The contractor worked with the irrigation company to “flush” the river by opening and closing the floodgates for a five-minute pulse, which pushed the thick oil toward the booms. A late afternoon rainstorm effectively “flushed” the system again, which pushed more crude oil down the river towards the containment boom.

DEQ Division of Water Quality (DWQ) monitoring staff and DEQ’s Southeast Utah District Engineer were on hand to collect samples at four locations in the Price River. The release happened below the drinking water intakes for the Price River Water Improvement District (PRWID) and Price City, so local drinking water was not affected.

On July 14, another tanker accident occurred at the same location and spilled additional gasoline into the river. Absorbent booms and pads were used to soak up as much gasoline as possible. Responders estimate 10-15 gallons of gasoline ended up in the river.

The crude oil formed quarter-size to fist-sized waxy globules scattered along the three-mile stretch of river from the crash site all the way to the downstream containment boom. Since these globules float in the water, some of them were deposited along the banks when the flush water receded. During the afternoon, of July 14, 2018, cleanup concentrated on the removal of oil globules along two river miles. Crews collected forty-three bags of oil and debris during this “rough-cleaning,” with each bag weighing approximately 15-20 pounds each.

Oil globules form on rocks. Click for larger view.

Heavy debris from a flash flood from the Gordon Creek drainage on the evening of July 14, 2018, took out the containment booms. An additional boom was put in place above Wellington to get ahead of the flood. However, before the booms were taken out by the flash flood, it’s estimated that crews had cleaned up two-thirds of the oil spilled into the river.

DEQ will continue to update the public on the situation, including the results of water-quality tests from samples taken by DEQ in the Price River following the spill.

Price River Spill Incident Maps

Click for larger view

TRAX Trains Keep Air-Quality Research on Track

By Logan Mitchell, Guest Blogger

DEQ invites guest bloggers to share their thoughts on issues that impact our environment. We appreciate their insights and the opportunity to broaden the conversation with others in the community.

TRAX train sporting an air-quality monitor on top

One great way you can help to reduce emissions and improve air quality is by using public transit. But did you know that the train you’re riding on may also be helping scientists study air pollution along the Wasatch Front?

For the past few years, my colleagues and I at the University of Utah have partnered with the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) and installed air-pollution monitors on two TRAX trains that operate on the Red and Green TRAX lines. We’ve been measuring particulate matter (PM_2.5), ozone (O3), and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), as well as the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO₂), and methane (CH₄). This project, along with several other innovative projects (such as low-cost PM_2.5 networks from PurpleAir and AQ&U ) as well as the gold standard for air-quality measurements from the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Division of Air Quality (DAQ), have dramatically increased the spatial coverage of air-quality measurements along the Wasatch Front and are leading to new insights into our air-pollution patterns.

What have we learned?

The spatial patterns of air pollution are controlled by emissions, atmospheric chemistry, and daily wind patterns. These factors combine to create gradients in air quality across the city that differ by season and time of day. Understanding these spatial patterns can increase your air-quality awareness and help you plan your daily activities to reduce your exposure to air pollution.

Ozone patterns along the Wasatch Front based on time of day. Click for larger view and to navigate map using Google Earth.

For example, ozone levels measured at DAQ sites in the summertime frequently exceed the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). We know that ozone concentrations are lowest in the morning, but what does that look like spatially across the city?

The TRAX data, averaged during morning hours across the entire summer season, show us what that looks like ( see map). The lowest ozone concentrations can actually be found in the city center in the morning. By mid-day, ozone levels are high due to photochemical reactions driven by strong atmospheric mixing and nitrogen oxides (NO_x) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) reacting in the presence of sunlight to form ozone.

Late in the evening as the sun goes down, the ozone levels fall, but they are still higher than in the morning. So, if you exercise outdoors along the Wasatch Front in the summertime, the best way to limit your exposure to ozone is to go in the morning.

There are interesting spatial patterns across the city, especially in the morning and evening. These features are strongly affected by the pattern of combustion across the city as well as air flowing into the valley from the side canyons. Another interesting feature that we’re still investigating is the persistently elevated ozone levels near the University of Utah.

In addition to looking at average conditions, the real-time TRAX air-quality data are posted online so you can see the latest air-quality measurements.

What’s next?

With all of this new data coming in, there are lots of opportunities for new research. First, we’re working on improving the understanding of the relationships between air pollutants and health so we can provide better guidance about the health impacts of air pollution. These data can also help us examine the emission inventories to find out if they are consistent with our measurements. Any discrepancies could point to “missing” emissions and lead to improvements in emission inventories.

Ultimately, our goal is to provide the public and policymakers with the best information possible so they can effectively tackle air-quality issues.

If you’d like to learn more about the TRAX study, check out the research paper we recently published in the journal Atmospheric Environment. Keep an eye on the DEQ blog webpage as well, because we’ll be writing additional blogs for DEQ about our work in the months to come. Stay tuned!

I am an atmospheric scientist at the University of Utah studying emissions and air quality along the Wasatch Front. In my free time, I enjoy rock climbing, skiing, trail running, gardening, and watching movies.

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