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Wyoming

Because of a series of dry basin floors across the Continental Divide, Wyoming is named from a Native American word meaning “big river flats.” The word is a Munsee Delaware Indian word, however, not from the local Shoshone or Arapaho Indians. The least populous state, with only 544,270 people as of 2009 and no large cities; the capital, Cheyenne, has a population of only 50,000. More than 91 percent of Wyoming is classed as rural.

Statistics and Ranking

The 16th Nationwide Survey of MSW Management in the United States found that, in 2006, Wyoming generated an estimated 684,690 tons of municipal solid waste (MSW), placing it 49th in a survey of the 50 states and the capital district. Of this tonnage, 73,200 tons were recycled, placing Wyoming 48th in the ranking of recycled MSW tonnage. Based on the 2006 population of 512,757, this is an estimated 1.38 tons of MSW generated per person per year (ranking joint 18th). Wyoming landfilled 611,490 tons in the state's 51 landfills (47th ranking), and only 590 tons were exported, the lowest reported exportation of MSW in the United States. Landfill tipping fees across Wyoming ranged from $30 to $80 per ton, where the cheapest and most expensive average landfill fees in the United States were $15 and $96, respectively. As of 2006, Wyoming was increasing its landfill capacity but had no waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities, and it was ranked ninth out of 44 respondent states for number of landfills. Only lead-acid batteries were reported as being banned from Wyoming landfills.

Taking Sublette County as an example of a typical rural Wyoming county, the $2.47 million waste management budget for 2010–11 consists of three major divisions: general waste management by way of landfill/balefill (65.3 percent); transfer station (31.6 percent); and recycling (3.1 percent). The landfill also accepts refuse from Teton County. The recycling budget is divided between the Tri-Town recycling program and the county-operated program in Pinedale. The waste management problems encountered in a rural county include unsecured loads arriving at the Sublette County Landfill, causing litter and road safety problems, and medical waste arriving in garbage trucks. Neither Sublette County landfill or transfer station has a licence for medical waste, and it poses a risk to staff. Every month, Sublette County sends a 30-gallon can of clinical waste to Salt Lake City, Utah, for incineration.

Economy

Wyoming is renowned as a state of cowboys and mountain men, and historically, agriculture has been a key part of the state's economy, although of lesser importance in the early 21st century. Main agricultural interests are cattle, alfalfa, hay, and sugar beets. Along with tourism, the leading industries are mining and public utilities. Coal deposits underlie 55 percent of the state, with the greatest concentration in the Powder River basin on the northeastern high plain. Wyoming leads the United States in coal production and has the largest coal mine on the continent, Black Thunder. Wyoming also contains 70 percent of the known global supply of bentonite, an absorbent clay used to seal subsurface spent-nuclear-fuel disposal systems and to quarantine metal pollution in groundwater; it is also used to line the base of landfills.

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