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Del Norte Solid Waste Authority directs staff to pursue resolution to remove Smith River recycling container
Summary
The Solid Waste Management Authority voted to have staff bring a resolution at the next meeting to remove a frequently abused community recycling container in Smith River, after members said contamination and illegal dumping made the service unsustainable.
The Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority voted to ask staff to draft a resolution for the next meeting to remove the Smith River community recycling container, citing repeated contamination and unanticipated disposal costs.
Commissioner Short, who raised the item, told the board that recent incidents show the site has become a de facto free garbage service: "Of the last six bins that were dumped, five of them went straight to the transfer station and were dumped as garbage," he said. The board recorded consensus that the service is being abused and that continuing it without a monitored alternative is unfair to the vendor and to the authority's finances.
Recology representative Shauna said Recology wants recycling to work locally but that contamination has driven up costs and forced disposals as trash. Director Ted said removing the service would require a contract change order and recommended preparing a resolution for formal consideration: "If the board's consensus direction is that you want to remove the service, then we would want to do a change order on that. I'd probably recommend we also do a resolution," he said.
Board members discussed alternatives, including outreach to tribal partners and community groups and the possibility of an ad hoc committee to study siting a monitored transfer or collection location. Several commissioners said prior operational changes—moving the bin to a fenced, daylight-only enclosure—had not solved the problem.
The board voted to direct staff to present a resolution at the next meeting to remove the Smith River recycling container effective as of today's date and to place discussion of an ad hoc committee on the next agenda. Director Ted said staff would return with the change order and resolution language and perform outreach before formal adoption.
Next steps: staff will prepare the draft resolution and agendize the ad hoc-committee appointment for the next meeting, and Recology will be involved in discussions about contract changes and community outreach.
