Castle Pines commits $7,500 to join Douglas County household hazardous waste program for 2025

The Castle Pines City Council voted on Aug. 27 to approve a memorandum of understanding with Douglas County to join the county’s household hazardous waste collection program for 2025. Stormwater program manager Joe Marenzik explained the program, which transitioned from Tri‑County Health to Douglas County in 2022, provides curbside pickup (by appointment) and drop‑off options and can reduce improper disposal of hazardous chemicals.

Marenzik said the proposed contribution is $7,500 for the year and that Douglas County’s program costs about $200,000 to run; he noted the fee would come from the city’s dedicated fund tied to bag‑fee/recycling legislation. The program also offers MS4 permit credit as part of the city’s annual reporting.

Nut graf: Council members supported the environmental protection rationale but asked staff to monitor yearly usage parity relative to contributions and requested user‑data reports from county partners. Marenzik said the county will provide that dataset and the city’s communications team will publicize the program.

Key details - Enrollment and operations: Residents will sign up on the county website; the city will link to the county’s household hazardous waste pages. - Scale and cost: Marenzik said the county’s program runs at roughly $200,000 and that the $7,500 contribution is a proportional local partner share; staff reported 75–100 residents used the pickup program in 2023 at ~$240 per pickup at county expense. - Reporting credit: Participation contributes to stormwater MS4 annual reporting metrics.

Council action: After a motion and second and discussion emphasizing water protection and outreach needs, the council approved the MOU on a recorded roll‑call vote.

Next steps: Staff will publish links and track local usage data to evaluate parity of usage versus contribution in future years.