County eyes land purchase for septage facility

Flathead County has taken a step toward creating a new regional septage treatment and biosolids treatment facility with the potential purchase of land for the facility.

County commissioners approved Oct. 21 a buy-sell agreement with the intent of purchasing 36.9 acres on Wiley Dike Road for the facility. The agreement lists a purchase price of $1.5 million for the property in lower valley.

County Administrator Pete Melnick said the agreement allows the county to order an appraisal and begin further analysis of the property. The closing date for the sale is listed as in January 2023.

“The facility has been part of the vision for 15 years,” Melnick said. “It has been seen as a way to address the growth and preserve environmental quality.”

The county has experienced rapid growth over the last decade and as a result the land that’s suitable for the disposal of septic waste has become quite limited. The county has an estimated 30,000 wastewater treatment systems.

Melnick said those systems need maintenance and the county has been hearing from private vendors that the land available to them to dispose of biosolids has been shrinking.

“This is probably one of the biggest infrastructure projects facing the county,” Melnick said. “It has an impact on the existing development and the future growth.”

The county is not committed to purchasing the property if it finds it’s not suitable for the plant. Under state law, it can’t buy the property if the appraisal doesn’t match the purchase price. The county signed the agreement to perform the necessary analysis of the property, Melnick noted.

The Wiley Dike Road property was one of five pieces of property initially suggested for the facility by HDR Engineering, which is in the process of creating a plan and design for the septage treatment and biosolids composting facility.

The engineer has been analyzing the county’s needs taking into account 20 and 40-year growth projections. The study is expected to be completed by the end of the year including an estimated cost to construct the facilities.

The county received $2 million in American Rescue Plan Act money from the state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for the project. County commissioners so far have set aside $4.6 million in ARPA funds for the purchase of the land, engineering and design phase.

Melnick said only ARPA funds are set to be used for the project with $20 million available to the county for sewer and water projects.

The septage plant is expected to be capable of processing 5 million gallons of waste and effluent annually for the county.

While the composting facility for biosolids — the byproduct of sewage treatment — would service the septage plant as well as Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls, it would have the potential to serve other neighboring communities.

“We heard from event organizers and construction crews this summer that they couldn’t get porta potties,” Melnick said. “We know that with all the growth that has happened time is of the essence with this.”

Features Editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 758-4421 or hdesch@dailyinterlake.com.