A concern over the budget led to a delay in approving the budget for the chip seal program, scheduled to begin this spring, but Nye County Commissioners Tuesday had little choice but to approve a $228,000 change order with Southwest Environmental Services for past work expanding the Pahrump landfill.

Commissioners had two choices, to pay $2.48 million from the Payment Equal to Taxes for chip sealing streets in Pahrump, Beatty, Amargosa Valley and Crystal for a program approved last July, or fund $1.22 million for a revised plan. Commissioner Lorinda Wichman made a motion to approve the slimmed down budget, but there was no second.

"The roads were actually approved by the commission to move forward this time, they never got funding. So what we're trying to figure out today is if we have anything for '08-09 for the chip seal," Nye County Acting Public Works Director Dave Fanning said.

Commissioner Butch Borasky said he found out after the meeting the county will have to chip seal a number of streets to comply with an agreement on dust control with the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection. He said the request to fund the chip seal program, which addresses 23 miles of streets in Pahrump, will be placed on the next county commission meeting April 7 in Tonopah.

The commission approved the $228,000 change order to Southwest Environmental Services after former Nye County Public Works Director Samson Yao authorized the landfill expansion without first getting commission approval. Yao was terminated for cause by county commissioners Oct. 2, 2008.

Backup information for the change order states it's "for excavation done at the Pahrump landfill by Southwest Environmental at the direction of the public works director to save the landfill 18 months of life. The change order for the work done during 2005-2007 was not processed."

Southwest Environmental thought county road department crews would excavate new cells at the landfill at the time of the original agreement in 2004, the company states.

Company owner John Shea wrote it was later determined his company would do the excavating work, due to their proximity to daily operations of the landfill. After talking to local contractors, he calculated a price of $2.89 per cubic yard for reimbursement of the excavation work.

The digging of new cells created 71,000 cubic yards of landfill capacity, the excavation of the east and south berms created another 35,000 cubic yards, the company states. Shea said 133,000 cubic yards of soil excavated between November 2004 and November 2007 was used for a daily or final cover of garbage.

Southwest Environemntal Services, owned by Pahrump Valley Disposal, originally had a $633,320 contract to operate the Pahrump landfill and transfer bins in Amargosa Valley and Beatty. Other change orders were added to install 12 gas monitoring wells, a consumer price indexed increase in 2007 and a documentation update.

The new contract price for this fiscal year, with the latest change order is $1.12 million.

On another public works matter, commissioners agreed to accept 23 streets in the Calvada Unit 14 subdivision totaling 10.5 miles for maintenance, including Silver Street, Bond Street and Thorne Drive. Fanning estimated it would cost $1.15 million to bring the gravel roads up to county standards but the county doesn't have to pay that yet.

The streets are in the southernmost part of Pahrump near Homestead Road. Commissioners in January 2008 voted to accept six other streets in that area.

Debbie Trimmer, of 9311 Church St., said every resident in the area is in support of the road dedication.

"The last time the roads were maintained was when they were built in the mid 1970s. If you can imagine what it's like to even walk across the street to your mailbox, you're taking your life in your hands. Safety is a big concern of our residents and it should be a concern of the board as well because it's very difficult to drive on these roads, especiallly on Church Street," Trimmer said.

Since the U.S. Bureau of Land Management closed the area south of town to shooting, there's been more travel trailers parking there, she said.

"There are certain companies that have refused deliveries," Trimmer said.

Fanning said the area will be improved as part of normal road department maintenance and wouldn't require commissioners to spend the $1.15 million this year. Streets with higher traffic counts and residences will be addressed first, he said.