A landfill contract approved by the Clinton County Commissioners in 2024 is now paying additional dividends for the County in 2026, generating added revenue that is being reinvested into the community through service projects across Clinton County.
Under the agreement with Walnut Creek Landfill, the tipping fee paid to Clinton County increased from $2.00 to $2.05 per ton of waste received. The $2.00 tipping fee had been static since 2017, which meant Clinton County was losing its purchasing power of that dollar each year. With the landfill averaging close to 500,000 tons of waste annually, the increase is expected to generate approximately $25,000 in additional revenue in both 2026 and 2027. The tipping fee will increase again in 2028 based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Tipping fee revenue is received by the County each month and goes toward lowering the demand on the tax dollar to support services in the county as well as providing community wellness programming funds. These funds are used to support the County’s annual Community Service Grant program, which provides financial support to not-for-profit organizations serving Clinton County residents. An additional contribution of $25,000 annually was negotiated in the new landfill contract. Those dollars are to be used for specific community service projects. The first payment of $25,000 in 2025 helped fund Cemetery Restoration projects around Clinton County.
In addition to the tipping fee increase, the 2025 contract requires Walnut Creek Landfill to pay a $20,000 annual road maintenance fee to help offset the impact of heavy truck traffic on county roads. This amount is double the previous payment received. All in all, in 2026 the new landfill tipping contract will generate over $60,000 of new monies to be reinvested in the community.
“The previous contract had gone many years without being revisited, and it was important for us to make sure it reflected current conditions,” said Jordan Brewer, president of the Clinton County Commissioners. “By renegotiating that agreement, we were able to secure terms that are more favorable to the County. We’re now seeing the benefit of that work through additional funding for community projects and support for our road infrastructure.”