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Barry County hires consultant, outlines plan to expand recycling and hazardous-waste services
Summary
The Barry County Board of Commissioners approved a contract with Fishback to create a new Materials Management Plan and heard a report from recycling coordinator Rachel France on grants, revenue and hazardous-waste events.
Barry County approved a detached professional services agreement with Fishback to produce a county Materials Management Plan and authorized the chairperson to sign the contract.
The decision followed a presentation by Rachel France, Barry County recycling coordinator, who summarized 2024 revenue, expenses and program priorities and described planned household hazardous-waste events for 2025. France said the county received just over $100,000 in revenue in 2024—about $75,000 of that from landfill tipping fees—and spent roughly $133,000, with hazardous-waste disposal accounting for about $86,927.
France told the board the county collected more than 91,000 pounds of hazardous-waste material in 2024, including about 40,000 pounds of electronics—10,000 more than in 2023—and more than 4,000 tires. She said Barry County signed a one-year agreement with Kalamazoo County to allow county residents to drop off hazardous materials year-round at Kalamazoo’s facility and listed two local collection events scheduled for May 17 and Sept. 20, 2025, at the Barry County Expo Center, 9 a.m.–1 p.m.
France said a new Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) grant and other planning funds will support the Materials Management Plan: the county expects $91,000 per year for three years for planning/implementation and an EGLE allocation of about $393,000 for planning and implementation over five years. She said the county’s goal is to increase recycling access from the last official county figure of 64% (2018) toward broader coverage, with particular focus on the lower southeast corner of the county, yard-waste collection and a permanent hazardous-waste facility.
Vice Chair Hatfield praised France’s work in guiding the transition from the Solid Waste Oversight Committee to the Materials Management Planning Committee. Commissioner Smelker asked why haulers now send local waste to Granger’s Lansing landfill; France said Granger is using its own landfill rather than the previously used facility, which reduces local tipping-fee revenue.
The board voted to approve the Fishback agreement after a motion by Commissioner Getty and second by Commissioner Smelker. The clerk recorded ayes from Bassett, Getty, Smelker, Tunison, Scott Field and Jackson. The motion carried.
