Stewart outlines future of Moore County solid waste

Private hauling could help Moore County avoid costly truck replacements, although savings aren't guaranteed

8:50 p.m. Oct. 19, 2026

DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor

Moore County's garbage isn't going anywhere. But the truck hauling it away might soon have somebody else's name on the door.

Mayor Sloan Stewart told the Metro Council on Monday, Oct. 19, that the county is preparing to shift more of its solid waste hauling to Richardson Waste, a Fayetteville-based company, rather than continue spending hundreds of thousands of dollars buying and maintaining garbage trucks.

The change has been in the works for months, with an expansion of Richardson's services expected around Dec. 1. The transition will happen gradually, and county trucks and employees will continue handling some collections.

"The services will remain the same in the county," Stewart said. "It's just that a lot of the trucking will be done by Richardson instead of Moore County."

At the heart of the decision is a financial problem Stewart says the county can no longer afford to ignore.

A lot of garbage, and some expensive trucks

For the past 18 to 24 months, county officials have talked about growth and what it means for water, schools, roads, and emergency services. Stewart told council members there's another department feeling the squeeze: solid waste.

Moore County handles approximately 300 tons of waste each month, including household garbage, discarded tires, brush, and other debris. That's a considerable amount of material to collect, load, and haul away.

"We're running about 300 tons a month through this county, which is quite a bit," Stewart said.

Disposal costs are rising, but Stewart said the larger problem is keeping enough trucks on the road.

"We cannot withstand buying $300,000 trucks every five years or six years," he said.

The county purchased a garbage truck approximately three or four years ago that will cost $265,000 by the time it's paid off. Annual debt service on that vehicle runs approximately $52,000.

By the time the final payment is made, Stewart estimates two-thirds of the truck's useful life will already be gone. And the department needs more truck capacity to keep up. "Every time we have a truck go down, we're behind," Stewart said.

Unlike a passenger vehicle, a garbage truck's condition isn't measured simply by the miles on its odometer. The constant stopping, starting, lifting, and compacting take a toll. So does the corrosive material hauled in its bed.

Stewart said it's possible to have a truck with a serviceable engine but a body or frame that's rusted beyond practical repair.

The department has spent approximately $12,000 on vehicle maintenance since July. Stewart said fuel costs ran around $2,500 earlier in the year. By September, the bill had reached approximately $4,700.

Major repairs often mean sending a truck to Huntsville or Nashville, where labor can run between $125 and $150 an hour. "Just because we buy the truck doesn't mean it's over," Stewart said. "It's constantly, you know, doing the repairs."

The county's aging fleet includes trucks dating to 2018 and 2016, along with a 2006 backup vehicle. And when one breaks down, getting it repaired isn't always a matter of dropping it off at the shop and picking it up the next morning.

Richardson has something Moore County doesn't

Stewart said he and the five-member Solid Waste Board have spent considerable time reviewing the county's hauling expenses and looking at how the operation has changed over the past two to three decades.

Board members are Cindy Cregier, Larry Hatfield, Larry Moorehead, Gordon Millsaps, and Shane Taylor.

The group has been exploring whether contracting out more hauling could help Moore County avoid major equipment purchases and unpredictable maintenance costs.

Stewart said he's worked with Richardson Waste for approximately 20 years. The company has already helped when county-owned trucks have broken down, and an agreement for expanded hauling services has been reviewed by the county's legal counsel.

The advantage, according to Stewart, is fairly simple: Richardson has more trucks. "They've got a fleet of trucks. One breaks down, they've got another that rolls right out," he said.

Moore County doesn't have that luxury. When a county truck breaks down, the department can fall behind while waiting for repairs.

The agreement includes a 2% increase provision and allows either party to terminate the arrangement with 30 days' notice.

That last provision raised questions from District 5 council member Brandon Ross, who was concerned about what would happen if Richardson's prices increased substantially in the future.

The contractor's increase is separate from the approximately 2% annual increase Stewart said the county already faces in landfill disposal charges. Those expenses will continue regardless of whose name is on the truck.

What changes for residents?

For most Moore County households, Stewart said the transition should be largely invisible. Weekly home pickup will continue. The convenience center will remain operational. And county crews will still handle collections that don't necessarily fit into a contractor's regular schedule.

Schools, for example, sometimes need additional pickups after ball games or other events. The nursing home may also require service more frequently than a typical household.

"I'm not going to call Richardson to come back up here to dump a dumpster at the school," Stewart said.

County equipment will remain available for those situations and as a backup when something goes wrong. If the convenience center's compactor breaks down, Stewart explained, a garbage truck can be used to collect waste until the equipment is repaired.

"So, yeah, they're not going away," he said of the county's trucks. "We may get rid of the old stuff, but we've got to keep all that as a backup as well."

Richardson will need time to establish routes and become familiar with the county's collection needs. The company has also discussed potentially leasing some county equipment, although Stewart indicated those decisions would come later.

What about county employees?

District 5 council member Brady Goodwin asked what the arrangement would mean for existing solid waste employees.

Stewart said there are no immediate plans to lay off workers. "We're not going to turn people loose or anything right now because this is going to be a working process because it's not going to happen overnight," he said.

Staffing has already become a challenge. Stewart told the council the department is down to one full-time driver with a commercial driver's license. That employee is in his early 60s and eligible for retirement. Another driver is 70 and works part-time.

Finding replacements at the county's current pay levels isn't easy. "It's hard to get a truck driver for $18 to $20 an hour," Stewart said.

The county also employs part-time drivers who help keep the operation running. Stewart said the county plans to continue using part-time drivers and some county-owned equipment as officials determine which responsibilities Richardson can assume.

For now, the plan is a combination of county-operated and contracted hauling, with adjustments made as the arrangement develops.

Will it actually save money?

That's the question Stewart wasn't prepared to answer Monday. "Right now, can I tell you, it's going to be a great savings right off the bat?" he asked council members. "I can't do that right now because it's going to take time to put this in play."

He believes the arrangement could eventually reduce expenses, but he offered no guarantees. "In time, I feel like there may be a savings," Stewart said.

Contracting could help the county avoid another major truck purchase and reduce unexpected repair bills. But the actual savings, if any, won't become clear until the arrangement has been operating long enough to evaluate.

Stewart did not provide council members with the total contract amount or a side-by-side comparison of projected contracted hauling costs and the costs of continued county operation.

The update did not require a council vote Monday. Stewart said he would keep members informed as the Solid Waste Board moves forward.

Same responsibility, different approach

Stewart reminded council members that providing solid waste service was among the responsibilities established when Moore County adopted its metropolitan government charter in the late 1980s.

Using a private contractor to handle some of the hauling doesn't change that obligation. "We're fulfilling what our charter and what we agreed to back when it was written in the '80s," he said.

Moore County will remain responsible for providing the service, even as Richardson takes on more of the work.

For residents, Stewart said, the practical difference should be minimal.

"We're still going to be providing the service," he said. "It just may have a different name on the truck."