Staff at the Lyon County landfill cleaned up stray construction debris like nails from around a transfer station for construction and demolition waste on Wednesday. In addition to the transfer station, Lyon County has a demolition landfill that mainly handles waste from large demolition projects, said Lyon County Environmental Administrator Roger Schroeder.

MARSHALL — It’s not just household garbage that gets dropped off at the Lyon County landfill. There’s also tons of demolition and construction debris like drywall, shingles and bricks.

However, proposed rule changes for construction and demolition (C&D) landfills in Minnesota could mean the end of the Lyon County C&D landfill near Russell.

“There would be a financial impact too,” Lyon County Environmental Administrator Roger Schroeder said this week. If the C&D landfill closes, the county would still need to conduct water testing and care for the site afterward, he said.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is in the process of looking at updating state rules for landfills. Some of the proposed rule changes are geared toward protecting the soil and groundwater from pollutants that can leach out of construction and demolition waste. The proposed new rules could require that C&D landfills have protective liners, conduct groundwater monitoring, and have financial assurance for after the landfill closes.

MPCA staff will discuss the proposed rule changes at a series of information sessions around the state over the next couple of months. One session will be held at Southwest Minnesota State University on Aug. 20.

Schroeder said it’s the liner requirement that would really affect the C&D landfill in Lyon County. The C&D landfill is not lined. Under the proposed rule changes, it would need to shut down in about four to seven years, he said. If other C&D landfills in the region close, it would have an impact in Lyon County as well, Schroeder said.

The Lyon County C&D landfill is mainly used for debris from big demolition projects, Schroeder said. Other construction and demolition waste is collected in a separate section of the main Lyon County landfill, for transfer to a landfill in Rock County.

Schroeder said the C&D landfill usually gets about 1,000 tons of waste per year, while 3,500 tons are transferred out of the county. Over the past couple of years, a number of small demolition landfills in the region had closed down, and more C&D waste was brought to the transfer station.

“Last year, we were double,” at about 6,500 tons, he said.

While the C&D landfill in Lyon County isn’t lined, it does have monitoring wells that are sampled twice a year, Schroeder said. The samples have occasionally shown higher levels of contaminants like arsenic or manganese, but not to the point where they would violate water standards, he said. Repeated testing also didn’t confirm the higher pollutant levels, he said.

Minerals like arsenic and manganese are also naturally present in soil, Schroeder said.

Schroeder made copies of information about the proposed MPCA rules and the upcoming information session in Marshall available at the Lyon County landfill. He said the discussion about the proposed rules would also go before the Lyon County Board at a future meeting.

Information on the MPCA’s website said the session will include a discussion of possible waste management strategies and potential options in the region. Pre-draft rule discussions, requests for comment, and a public hearing would also be offered at future dates.

The Aug. 20 MPCA information session in Marshall will be held in Charter Hall room 201, at the campus of SMSU. A networking session is planned from 12:30-1 p.m., with the meeting taking place from 1-4.