Lyon County commissioners signed an agreement concerning fuel surcharges relating to solid waste transfers to Hamm Quarry during Thursday’s Lyon County commission meeting.
Blaise Plummer, Emporia city attorney, said the city was approached last year with fuel surcharges in addition to the amount they pay to haul solid waste to Hamm Quarry. Fuel prices have been fluctuating in recent months and it’s costing the transfer company more to transport from Emporia to Hamm Quarry, which is about 174 miles round trip. Plummer said the company makes around 100 trips per month. That translates into about a $7,500 to $9,000 a month fuel bill for the transfer company.
To help cover these costs, the new contract states that if diesel fuel goes over $2 a gallon, there will be a surcharge. For instance, if fuel is at $2.50 per gallon, there would be a 50 cent surcharge, which would add up to an additional $1,500 per month. The trucks get 5.5 miles a gallon. If fuel were to go above $3 a gallon, there would be a surcharge cap of $3,000 a month.
The new contract is up in 2010 and will be re-negotiated at that time, Plummer said.
Also during Thursday’s meeting, Bob Agler of A&M Financial Consultants gave commissioners the end-of-the-month financial report for December. County Controller Dan Slater said it was a good report.
“The revenue numbers came in over what we anticipated,” Slater said.
Slater said all funds came in under budget.