Jerry Askin wrote for WCTV 2 August 2011, Wakulla County Soon To Have Mandatory Curbside Trash Pickup? Folks in Wakulla County could soon be forced to pay mandatory fees for curbside trash pickup.
Continue reading“It’s going to provide our residents a way to easily dispose of their garbage. And it will provide recycling opportunities for the citizens of Wakulla County,” says Wakulla County Commissioner Alan Brock.
“I personally don’t want to spend the expense of having
So, as David Rodock reported this morning in the VDT solid waste management was a discussion topic for Lowndes County Commissioners, even though it wasn’t on yesterday’s work session agenda.
Interesting that a meeting was held after the work session. I was at the work session, camera in hand, and you can see what transpired there with talk of the jail , the possibility of Sunday alcohol package sales, oh and the animal shelter all during the County Manager’s Reports.Nothing has been said (in public) about solid waste disposal since the public meetings where the pubic was told by Chairman Rod Casey and County Manager Pritchard that the county staff had “examined every option” and there was nothing that the public could possibly suggest that hadn’t already been considered.
The proposed plan (VDT Article August 29, 2008 Lowndes County’s proposed solid waste plan in effect Jan 1) was basically curbside collection (where no vendor could meet the proposed price cap suggested by the county) and what we ended up with was pay for drop off permits (VDT Article May 13, 2009 Solid waste disposal permits now available).
Joe Pritchard remembers those meetings like this (Update 25 Sept 2013 to add reference, “Commissioners want Lowndes out of the trash business” by David Rodock in the VDT 24 May 2011):
“I went through eight public meetings, better described as floggings, where the public just vented every ounce of frustration they ever had relating to solid waste over that time period,” said Joe Pritchard, county manager. “That was not a pleasant process. Yes, we need to come up with a way of notifying the public, but I’m here to tell you, that public meetings is not it.”
So, the problem (disposing of garbage costs money) still exists and the county has known that for years. Yet, here we are on the cusp of a crisis again and Commissioner Raines says
“My mind’s made up and I’m willing to call an emergency meeting tonight if we need to”
Why hasn’t the county been soliciting input during these two years that they knew the system was out of balance? Why must everything be a crisis?
-Gretchen
Robert D. Bullard writes in
Dismantling Energy Apartheid in the United States,
Many “clean wood chips” burning biomass plants can easily turn to burning more contaminated fuels (which may be cheaper or even free), or get paid to take really dirty wastes like trash or tires. Public opposition to biomass facilities has driven siting that follows the “path of least resistance,” which often translates to states where environmental regulations are lax and companies are given huge tax incentives to build these kinds of incinerators, and investors count on the local residents being uninformed and apathetic. Environmental justice siting concerns often get buried in the excitement and notion of “green energy.”There’s more, including a writeup about the local proposed incinerator, starting:Zoning laws are often legal weapons deployed in facilitating energy apartheid.
Residents in Valdosta, Georgia are fighting to block a 40 megawatt biomass incinerator slated for construction on a 22-acre site in their community. The community is already overburdened with polluting industries and heavy truck traffic.Read it and see.
-jsq
For entertainment, I read daily the Rant and Rave in the local newspaper. Now, I know some people here think that what’s written there is so horrible that they can’t stand it. Others think it is just for those too afraid to say something in public. Nonetheless, I read it nearly daily as I find it an interesting window into our area.
Lately, there have been several people writing in about the advertising signs posted around both Valdosta and the county. They note that the messaging on these signs is in direct conflict with Valdosta’s new litter campaign slogan. I can only assume they mean the yellow “Got Junk?” signs.
For example Continue reading