Garfield County commissioners approved waiving landfill tipping fees for property owners cleaning up debris from the July 20 Slaughterhouse Gulch mudslide that flooded Interstate 70 and nearby properties between Silt and New Castle.

Commissioners Tom Jankovsky and Perry Will unanimously approved the waiver Monday for a 60-day period. Commissioner Mike Samson was absent.

Before the landfill begins accepting mud and debris under the waiver, Landfill Director Deb Fiscus said the county needs to check with the state to determine whether the material must be tested. She said the mud appears to be naturally occurring, but the county needs to make sure accepting it would not put the landfill in violation of its state permit.

“I need to double check with the state, make sure none of this debris and the mud needs tested,” Fiscus said. “I’m thinking that maybe it won’t because it’s all natural. It just came in the flood.”

The July 20 flooding sent mud and water across I-70 and Highway 6 between Silt and New Castle. I-70 was closed in both directions between mile markers 97 and 105 before eastbound traffic partially reopened July 22. All lanes reopened July 24.

The request to waive landfill fees was first raised by Del Whittington at the commissioners’ meeting the previous week. Because it was not on the agenda at the time, commissioners asked that it return Monday for formal consideration.

Will said several property owners affected by the flooding had raised concerns with him about the cost of disposing of mud and debris.

“Several of the landowners, property owners up here, had asked me about this because of the dump fees,” Will said. “And Mr. Whittington, I think, is fairly deep into landfill fees at this point… That’s mud and debris and all that.”

The county will also need a list of affected property owners and any contractors hauling debris on their behalf. Fiscus said those lists would help the landfill determine who qualifies for the waived fees.

Material brought to the landfill will also have to be dry enough to pass a paint filter test, which determines whether it contains too much liquid to be accepted.

Fiscus said landfill staff can generally tell whether a load is too wet through a visual inspection.

“If the trucks are leaking, it’s probably too wet,” Fiscus said.

The need to let the mud and debris dry was one reason commissioners settled on a 60-day period.

“I think we need to give at least 60 days because we need time to let the mud and the water kind of dry out,” Will said.

County staff also plans to send affected property owners information outlining what materials can be accepted and other landfill requirements. The cost of the waived tipping fees will be covered through a county commissioners fund used to support landfill tipping fees.