II Trial courts' orders granting summary disposition are reviewed de novo on appeal. The agency is therefore liable for any injuries or damages incurred as a result of its tortious conduct. Kootsillas argues that the operation of the city's landfill is an ultra vires activity. Therefore, the city is not entitled to immunity. He acknowledges that, with respect to a municipality's collection and disposal of its own garbage, its activities involve a governmental function.
Cities have a statutory right to own and run facilities to dispose of their own waste and garbage.
The fact that a landfill accepts garbage from outside its borders for a fee does not turn the activity into an ultra vires one. The collection of garbage is a matter of public health. Matters of public health are state concerns, not singularly local ones. When municipalities collect garbage and run disposal sites, they are acting as an arm of the state. Curry, supra .