The Air Quality Control Commission’s proposed Regulation 31 would force massive costs on rural landfills, many of which operate on budgets of just $300,000 per year. Under this rule, they could face $2–$10 million in upgrade costs plus up to $1 million per year in new operating expenses.

Here’s what you should know:

  • The waste sector accounts for only 1.7% of Colorado’s methane emissions, and rural landfills are just a small fraction of that.
  • These costs will increase tipping fees, driving up the cost of living, encouraging illegal dumping, and risking landfill closures.
  • More closures mean longer waste-hauling routes, which will actually add emissions to Colorado’s air.
  • The proposal is rushed, based on flawed data, and does not reflect the realities of Colorado’s rural waste systems.

Bottom line: To reduce less than half of one percent of Colorado’s total emissions, this rule would impose tens of millions of dollars in costs—burdens that will ultimately fall on rural families, farmers, and small businesses.

So would this affect the Construction Community in Western Colorado?

WCCA members build the roads, schools, homes, and infrastructure that keep this state moving. Regulation 31 doesn’t just add costs on paper — it threatens Colorado’s ability to build, grow, and provide affordable housing for our families.

  • Regulation 31 will drive up tipping fees and hauling costs on every project.
  • Homes, roads, and schools will all become more expensive and harder to deliver on time.
  • If landfills close, debris will have to be hauled long distances which is difficult for rural Colorado as it is. That means higher fuel costs, more delays, and more strain on contractors already stretched thin.
  • At a time when Colorado faces a housing crisis, this rule will make homes even less affordable for working families.

Impact on Waste Hauling

  • Contractors rely on haulers to keep jobsites safe and efficient. Many of these haulers are local small businesses on thin margins.
  • Regulation 31 will push them past their limits, forcing higher costs onto families, local governments, and businesses. Our rural municipalities-some that don’t even make $300k year cannot absorb the cost of the changes proposed. The cost will be passed onto the users.
  • With fewer affordable landfill options, Colorado will see more illegal dumping in ditches, back roads, and open land.
  • And longer truck routes mean more emissions and more damage to our roads — the opposite of what this rule is supposed to achieve.

Western Colorado Contractors Association members brought forth the concerns regarding REGULATION 31 that were researched.  WCCA testified in the AQCC Hearing on August 20 with these concerns from members and the impacts sighted by our members.

This regulation and outcomes from the AQCC Hearings will be discussed in the August 27th  WCCA Government Affairs Committee.