Hardin County’s landfill is the 6th largest in volume of the 26 contained landfills permitted in Kentucky and one of only 7 county or municipal owned landfills.  Opened in 1997, the Pearl Hollow Landfill currently receives 325,000 tons of refuge per year with approximately 40% of the waste coming from Hardin County and 60% from the other 39 counties we are permitted to serve (2 of which are in Indiana). 

The disposal of out of county waste at Peal Hollow provides the volume necessary for a financially viable landfill operation supporting the county solid waste department’s annual operating budget of approximately $8.5 million.  All net proceeds from solid waste operations are reinvested into construction of new cells for disposal of future waste.

In 2005/2006 we completed a $7.1 million construction project for cells 3A and 4A at the Pearl Hollow landfill.  By combining these two cells into one construction project we produced an estimated savings of more than $700,000 in engineering, construction, and quality control expenditures.  Another innovative cost cutting initiative to save Hardin County taxpayers money.

Construction of Cells 3A and 4A were completed in December 2005, received final approval from state regulators in January 2006, and will start accepting waste in July as we reach capacity at the previously constructed cell.  Cells 3A/4A will provide 3 million cubic yards of air space for the disposal of approximately 2.3 million tons of refuge.  This is more than the combined disposal area of all the previously constructed cells since the landfill opened in the fall of 1997 and will provide disposal space for the next six to seven years based on current daily tonnage rates.

To date, Hardin County has completed construction of 5.3 of the 7.1 million cubic yards of air space currently permitted by the state.  Cells 3A/4A, combined with the remaining approved space yet to be constructed, provides the county landfill with ten to eleven years of remaining disposal space as currently permitted.

During the 2006/2007 fiscal year, we will complete the necessary design and permit application process for a 23 million cubic yard expansion for the county landfill.  This expansion has been in the planning process for a several years and involves increasing the footprint of the existing disposal area within the county owned property for the Pearl Hollow Landfill.  The current permitted space occupies a footprint of approximately 61 acres.  With the expansion, the permitted disposal area will occupy less than 142 acres of the county owned 1,600 acres site.  The approve expansion will provide a total disposal area of 30 million cubic yards and will extend the life of the landfill by more than 50 years at current disposal volume rates and compaction densities.

Shrimp deal dies in Fiscal Court deadlock
- May 24, 2006
A tie vote killed the possibility of a shrimp production research project in Hardin County.

The facility hoped to use the excess heat from the new power plant at the county-owned landfill to keep the water in the indoor tanks a consistent 88 degrees. That was the main appeal of locating it here.
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Business sense
- May 15, 2006
In the April 27 edition of The News-Enterprise, I read Melinda Overstreet’s excellent article concerning the potential for developing shrimp farming in Hardin County. I admit I know nothing about the shrimp farming business; however, I am a businessman and I can recognize a good business opportunity when I see one.
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Shrimp project eyes landfill location
- April 27, 2006
A budding shrimp company is waiting to learn whether the county will lease a five-acre lot at its landfill for a research and development project.

David Rozier, chief executive officer of Magnolia Shrimp, told members of Hardin County Fiscal Court on Tuesday that his company’s mission is to become the pre-eminent producer of saltwater shrimp in the United States by developing and implementing indoor production systems.
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Methane project revs up engines
- January 26, 2006
YOUNGERS CREEK — Energy was building in the room even before the last tap of the smooth keypad powered up the first of three engine/generator combinations.

Once they were all online, enough electricity to power 2,500 homes flowed to Nolin Rural Electric Cooperative Corp.’s Colesburg substation from an unassuming 5,000-square-foot rectangular block building at the foot of Pearl Hollow Landfill’s hills.

After test runs last week, Wednesday was the real deal for the project that uses methane gas created by decomposing waste in the landfill to power engines that fire up generators to create electricity.
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County approves methane contract
- January 26, 2005
Harry Berry is excited.

With only minor details left to be finalized, the Hardin County judge/executive has the authority to sign a contract that will lead to the production of electricity — from trash.

More precisely, the methane gas created by the decomposition process at the county-owned Pearl Hollow Landfill would be piped out of the ground to an on-site electricity generating plant to be built by East Kentucky Power Cooperative. EKPC sells electricity to Nolin Rural Electric Cooperative Corp., which serves part of Hardin County. Production could begin by the end of this year.
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Landfill could become electricity source
Methane gas produced from decomposing garbage would be turned into power under new proposal
- September 10, 2004
The barren hillsides at the Pearl Hollow Landfill in Hardin County looked a little greener Thursday when Hardin County officials began exploring ways to turn methane gas into electricity.

If they sign an agreement offered by the East Kentucky Power Cooperative, the gas from decomposing garbage could keep lights burning and appliances running in 3,000 homes on an ongoing basis.

"It's not too soon to undertake something like this," Judge/Executive Harry Berry said during a meeting of the solid waste committee. "It's just a question of whether it's a good deal for the county."
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