What Does it Cost to Landfill Waste in Wisconsin Compared to Surrounding States?
Most waste coming into Wisconsin from other states goes to privately owned landfills. It is difficult to compare disposal (“tipping”) prices at these landfills because most waste haulers are either part of the company owning the landfill or do business under a private contract that includes volume discount pricing. Based on published price lists, Wisconsin landfill tipping prices on average are similar to those in surrounding states. However, in comparisons of average tipping prices for landfills located near our borders, Wisconsin prices tend to be slightly lower. Wisconsin and other states also impose per-ton fees on landfilled waste, typically to support recycling and other environmental programs. Wisconsin’s per-ton tipping fee is currently higher than in surrounding states. In 2007,Wisconsin generated about $5.3 million in recycling tipping fee revenues from waste imports, or about 23 percent of the total $22.9 million generated from all recycling tipping fees.
