Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, December 9, 1993 TAG: 9312090052
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-10 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: STEVE KARK CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: PEARISBURG LENGTH: Medium
They've also found that there's no way to please everyone.
Instead of hauling the trash the five miles to its own landfill, now the county has to truck it 25 miles "over the mountain" to the Montgomery County landfill. And for the first time, Giles County residents have to pay for trash disposal - even if they take it to the dumpsters themselves.
It's been rough going, but things are beginning to fall into place, said Supervisor Bobby Compton at Tuesday night's public hearing on the county's new trash ordinance. "The system is starting to smooth out."
But try telling that to residents of the town of Pearisburg. Several attended the hearing and complained about the supervisors' decision to prohibit them from dumping trash in the county's green dumpster boxes.
Because the towns of Pearisburg, Narrows and Glen Lyn decided against joining the county's trash plan, the supervisors ruled that it is illegal for residents of those towns to use the county's trash facilities.
It just didn't seem fair to one town resident. Shouldn't the dumpsters be available to anyone who pays taxes to the county? he asked.
Another resident said he had been turned away from the county's lot for dumping old tires, stoves and refrigerators. Where are we supposed to take stuff like that? he wondered.
Those are exactly the kinds of problems consultants warned us about, Compton told the disgruntled town residents. When the towns decided to go their own way, the supervisors were told people would complain because they were used to everybody dumping in the green boxes, he said.
Furthermore, the towns haven't provided for disposing of things like old refrigerators and stoves, so residents have nowhere to go to get rid of that kind of stuff, said Compton.
"The towns were given the option to join us, but they chose not to," said Supervisor Larry "Jay" Williams. It would be unfair for county residents to have to pay for disposing of town trash, he said.
Since the county has started to monitor who puts trash into its dumpsters, they learned that up to 30 percent is illegally dumped, Compton said.
Part of the illegal dumping comes from the towns, he said, but also from outside the county. Compton said that a Tazewell County resident was caught dumping a whole truckload of trash into one of the county's dumpsters. People who live in West Virginia frequently cross over and dump in Giles County, he said.
County residents have to pay for all trash collected from the dumpsters, whether its dumped legally or not. It just isn't fair to them, he said.
A Pearisburg resident himself, Compton said he sympathized with those who have been affected by the new ordinance. "I've had to make changes myself," he said. "I'm not allowed to use them anymore either."
County Administrator Janet Tuckwiller announced that the first bills for trash disposal will be mailed shortly after the first of the year. Residents who are receiving the county's door-to-door pickup service will be charged $13.75 per month. All others will pay $12 per month. Bills will be mailed every other month.
Tuckwiller estimated that the county would collect $718,000 from county residents over the next year. The county expects to pay $682,500 for trash disposal, she said. The remaining $35,000 would be used for unanticipated expenses. She said she hopes that the monthly rates could be lowered as the county improves its recycling program.
by CNB