Jake Pelroy protests ongoing CleanLane boondoggle

from Jake Pelroy for East Lane County

Jake Pelroy, candidate for East Lane County Commissioner, issued a statement Aug. 20 strongly criticizing the Lane County Board of Commissioners’ recent 3-2 vote to advance the controversial CleanLane waste processing facility in Goshen.

The project is projected to cost $11 million annually over 25 years, totaling $275 million in public expenditure.

“The board majority—including East Lane Commissioner Buch—voted to sink more public funds into this multimillion-dollar boondoggle, and requested a code change to force the facility through,” said Pelroy. “This is a problem of the county’s own making, and local taxpayers and residents are being forced to pay the price.”

The vote follows recent actions by the board to address a $5 million shortfall in the Waste Management Division by raising minimum disposal fees by 66%, increasing tipping fees by 5%, cutting transfer station hours, and closing facilities. 

Pelroy pointed out that these cuts and regressive fee increases disproportionately harm working families and escalate local illegal dumping issues, while cities and haulers shift to more cost-effective alternatives outside county lines.

Pelroy highlighted the stark contrast between how the county handles its own projects versus how it treats local residents and businesses. Lane County has built a reputation among builders, realtors, and land use professionals as the hardest county in Oregon for residential or commercial development—due to burdensome bureaucratic hurdles like legal lot verifications, big game habitat overlays, and lengthy appeal processes.

“When everyday citizens try to build a home or expand a business, they face endless red tape and arbitrary rulings from unelected officials, with no right to petition their elected representatives,” Pelroy noted. “Yet when the board majority wants to place a massive industrial facility in a flood-prone area, they simply rewrite the code for themselves.”

In addition to financial concerns, Pelroy voiced significant environmental alarms regarding the proposed Goshen site. Sited on flood-prone land, the facility poses serious risks of water contamination. A creek running through the property sits downstream of a protected fish restoration project, flows directly into the Willamette River, and provides vital beaver habitat.

“Placing an industrial site processing the entire county’s garbage in the backyard of Goshen residents endangers both their quality of life and sensitive local ecosystems,” said Pelroy.

Pelroy contrasted the county’s restrictive land use policies with disaster recovery outcomes, noting that Lane County sits at a 50% recovery rate for the Holiday Farm Fire compared to Marion County’s 83% recovery rate.

“As commissioner, I will stand for transparency, accountability, and equal application of the law,” concluded Pelroy. “We need to restore public oversight, cut unnecessary bureaucracy, and ensure our land use system serves the people of Lane County—not just county government.”

About Jake Pelroy for East Lane County Commissioner: Jake Pelroy is running for East Lane County Commissioner to advocate for responsible fiscal management, transparent governance, cut unnecessary bureaucracy, and ensure fair treatment for the residents, working families, and communities of Lane County.