Douglas County approves $7.88 million Sedalia biochar facility contract

Douglas County took a major step toward a new Sedalia waste hub on April 28, approving a $7.88 million construction contract for a biochar and recycling facility that county leaders say will cut hauling costs, reduce wildfire fuel loads and give residents a closer place to dump hard-to-handle material.

The project, awarded to Bauen Studios, will add a biochar building, product storage, utilities and other site improvements at the county’s new Public Works operations site in Sedalia, south of Airport Road off U.S. 85 near Waste Connections. County materials describe the plan as budget neutral and say it is designed to combine six programs at one location: slash and mulch, green waste, leaf drop, household hazardous waste, electronic waste and biochar production.

For Douglas County households and contractors, the biggest change is practical. The new site is intended to work as a one-stop drop for yard waste, electronics, household chemicals and other material that now can require extra trips or more costly disposal. County officials say the facility should also reduce the need to haul slash out of county, a cost that has risen as Douglas County continues to balance wildfire mitigation with growth.

The county says the project will save taxpayers more than $420,000 annually and could generate roughly $400,000 in annual capital recovery when the first biochar unit starts up in January 2027. A second unit is planned for 2029, when annual capital recovery could reach as much as $1.9 million. Douglas County also set aside up to $3 million in its 2025 budget to enable the facility.

Planning records show the project, listed as Douglas County Public Works - Biochar Facility, covered about 44.3490 acres. The county accepted the filing on Feb. 10, 2026, and approved it on March 17, 2026. Douglas County also held a public open house on Jan. 28 to explain the project to residents.

The new facility comes as the county continues to expand its yard waste operations. Douglas County said its 2025 slash-mulch and yard debris program processed 32,841 cubic yards of material, and the 2026 season opened in Sedalia on April 4 at 5675 Delva Way. Officials have framed the new operation as a broader wildfire-preparedness tool, and Aurora later announced a $100,000 investment in the county’s biochar and waste diversion effort.

County leaders say the site will turn woody debris from mitigation work into biochar, a charcoal-like product made through pyrolysis that can improve soil health, hold water and filter pollutants. Douglas County says it will be the nation’s first county-owned and operated biochar facility, a model it hopes will link wildfire mitigation, disposal and resource recovery in one local operation.