After three summers of dump trucks hauling coal ash from Ford to Trapp, the project is less than a month away from completion.

Nick Comer, a spokesman for East Kentucky Power Cooperative, updated a group of southern Clark County residents Tuesday in a community meeting.

“We are very close to completing the project, probably two to three more weeks of trucks hauling,” Comer said. “Pretty soon they’re going to be cover ing what you see with soil.”

EKPC closed the coal-fired Dale Station in Ford in 2014 because it would not meet increasingly stringent regulations. The ash, which is the byproduct of burning coal to make electricity, was stored in several ponds on site, which is along the Kentucky River.

Beginning in 2015, dump trucks started hauling the ash to a new landfill on its Smith Station property in Trapp. In all, the truck will move approximately 560,000 pounds of ash.

As the weather has allowed, Comer said crews have worked longer shifts.

“Last week for four or five days, they were operating all day and moved the ash from the (river) bank up to the plant,” Comer said. “Hopefully that will let us move that out within the next couple of weeks. All the ash is next to the plant now.”

The river bank, which has had some cuts to aid drainage, has been inspected and certified as clean, he said.

At this point, EKPC has no plans for the facility or the property.

“We’ll sell you a boiler at a great price,” he joked.

Comer said a security guard will remain on duty at Dale Station and the property will continue to be fenced.