Portage County to hold public comment, auction surplus equipment and pursue side-load truck for solid waste program

Dawn, director of the Portage County Solid Waste Management District, told the Portage County Board of Commissioners on March 27 that the district will begin a written public-comment period on a new draft solid-waste plan and will host a public hearing June 26 at 11:15 a.m.

The draft plan has been submitted to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency for review and returned with nonbinding advisory comments, Dawn said. The county will send the draft for written comment to the adjacent solid-waste district, major haulers and generators, local communities and the public before the hearing.

Dawn said the district is restarting its participation in multiple township spring cleanups and again bringing 40-yard dumpsters to townships to collect tires and other bulky items. "It's not enough. There's still a lot of tires out there," she said, citing ongoing concerns about mosquito breeding in discarded tires.

The district also asked the board to declare one truck and miscellaneous items obsolete and authorize a public auction. Dawn said the auction would be hosted at the solid-waste facility by Edinburg Auction and that county staff could bring additional items if other departments wish to include surplus equipment.

Separately, Dawn said the district has budgeted for a new automated side-load collection truck and asked the board to declare the necessity to purchase one. She said the truck is intended to handle scrap tires, yard waste and scrap metal and that the district applied for an Ohio EPA grant to help pay for a hook-lift truck but did not receive the grant.

Dawn also told commissioners the district has about 30 older green carts in serviceable condition and has discussed donating them to the Portage County Fair to reduce the fair's trash collection bill. Commissioners indicated informal support for donating the carts rather than putting them in the auction.

The board approved resolutions later in the meeting to declare the necessity to purchase one automated side-load blue truck and to declare obsolete and authorize sale by public auction of one truck and miscellaneous items from the solid-waste district (see "Votes at a glance").

Why it matters: The solid-waste plan review and the public hearing set the timetable for community input on district operations and regional hauling rules. The auction and equipment purchase decisions affect county operational capacity and budget planning for collection and recycling services.

What happens next: The draft plan will be available for written comment; commissioners and staff will hold the public hearing on June 26 at 11:15 a.m. The district will proceed with an auction of declared-obsolete equipment and move forward with the budgeted truck procurement process after the board's declaration of necessity.