Ballinasloe Urban Council has rejected a proposal which would have resulted in all the waste from Galway city and county being dumped at a landfill site near the town.
Under the plan the Ballina sloe site was to take 120,000 tonnes of waste annually for the next seven years, pending the identification of a permanent site elsewhere in the county to cater for future needs.
However, urban councillors have turned down a package which would have given the council over £2 million for agreeing to lease the landfill to Galway County Council and Galway Corporation.
