LEBANON — Towns that have their trash and recycling hauled to the Lebanon Solid Waste and Recycling Facility will be hit with double-digit rate increases next year.
The increases also apply to residents in 23 towns who bring their own trash and recyclables to the landfill, located on Route 12A in West Lebanon.
Commercial haulers will see the largest impact, costs that will be passed on to customers around the Upper Valley who use their services.
Commercial trash haulers will have to pay $155 per ton — up from $120.75 per ton — as of Jan. 1, 2026, according to an ordinance the Lebanon City Council passed in October. A ton is equal to 2,000 lbs.
“That’s a pretty steep increase and we would be concerned about that, but the reality is it’s the city of Lebanon’s asset and we don’t have much choice,” Plainfield Town Administrator Stephen Halleran said in a phone interview.
The rate increase is part of a multi-year plan to make the landfill more financially self-sustaining, Lebanon Assistant Director of Public Works Chris Kilmer said.
For years, the city held rates steady and it has been trying to make up for that.
“Right now, we’re currently running in the black, but it’s very short in the black,” Kilmer said.
Operating costs at the facility are on the rise, including equipment costs, Kilmer said. Lebanon also recently had to cap a portion in the landfill that has reached its capacity faster than expected, Kilmer said.
The facility also has to pay new fees being levied by New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services: As of Jan. 1, facilities will have to pay that state a fee of $3.50 per ton of solid waste.
“We had to add that in because we can’t absorb that cost within our budget,” Kilmer said in a phone interview.
The majority of the solid waste department’s proposed $8.117 million operating budget will be funded by fees, according to budget documents from the city.
Upward trend
City officials made the decision to target price increases for nonresidents and commercial haulers, while keeping rates for city residents generally steady.
“We were very cautious of trying not to impose the necessary increase just directly onto the Lebanon residents,” Kilmer said.
Yearly permits for residents will rise from $10 to $15, and from $15 to $25 for nonresidents, according to a copy of the ordinance.
“Pay-As-You-Throw” bags, which people can purchase at local retailers to use at the landfill, will rise from $2 to $2.50 for 15-gallon bags and $4 to $5 for 30-gallon bags.
Punch cards will remain at $40.
“You will see a slight increase for nonresident use for the pay-to-throw bags, but the core of this was put on the commercial haulers,” Kilmer said. “They bring in the bulk of the waste into the facility so it made sense to do that.”
The latest rate increases are part of a longer-term trend that affects all users, “including municipalities, residents, businesses, and commercial haulers,” said Jeff Weld, a spokesman for Casella.
Overall, rates at the Lebanon facility have climbed significantly since 2024, Weld said in a statement, adding that the increase “highlights the critical need for sustainable, reliable disposal capacity throughout the state.”
Lebanon charged $78.80 per ton in 2023, about half of what haulers will be paying under the new rates, Kilmer said, adding that “rates were not adjusted according to operational needs for about 10 years prior so larger increases have been needed to cover operating costs.”
In New Hampshire, towns that send their waste to Lebanon are Canaan, Enfield, Grafton, Hanover, Lyme, Newbury, Orange, Orford, Plainfield, Sutton and Wentworth.
In Vermont, those towns are Bridgewater, Hartford, Hartland, Norwich, Pomfret, Fairlee, Sharon, Strafford, Thetford, Vershire, West Fairlee and Woodstock.
Towns adjust
Plainfield contracts with Casella to bring 480 tons of waste to the Lebanon landfill each year, Halleran said. Under the current rates, that puts Plainfield on track to pay $57,960 in 2025.
Under next year’s rate per ton, that would rise to $74,400 — a roughly 28% increase “for a service we absolutely must have,” Halleran said.
Plainfield also contracts with Casella to provide curbside pickup, which is funded through a mix of the taxes and user fees, Halleran said. The trash and recyclables picked up curbside are then transported to West Lebanon.
“Having the City of Lebanon accept our waste is incredibly valuable to us,” Halleran said, noting that there are few other options.
Lebanon is home to the only solid waste facility in the Upper Valley.
Thetford is raising sticker fees from $25 to $30 to help offset the increases from Lebanon, Town Manager Brian Story said. Thetford residents are required to purchase stickers to use the town’s transfer station. Thetford does not provide curbside services to residents.
“We’re hoping to control and absorb the costs where we can, but we have to pay what they charge,” Story said in a phone interview. “It’s an essential service so it will have an impact and it will increase taxes.”
The change in rates is expected to cost Enfield an additional $50,000 in 2026, Public Works Director Jim Taylor said. The town, which contracts with Casella, sends around 1,500 tons of waste a year from its transfer station and curbside services to West Lebanon.
Enfield is on track to pay Lebanon around $180,000 based on the current fees and it will increase to around $230,000 per year in 2026.
“It’s a huge leap,” Taylor said in a phone interview.
He noted that recent increases have been around 15% per year and that, prior to the last few years, the rates had remained steady for at least a decade. “I think that’s coming back to bite them now,” he added, noting that if the rates went up less over a longer period of time it could be easier for towns to absorb.
“I think over the years they’ve been being very fair with their prices,” Enfield Town Manager Ed Morris said in a phone interview. “They have to deal with cost increases and DES to be able to run the landfill. Everybody has to help pay for that.”