Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home City Council agreed by consensus Tuesday, March 12, that it was worth looking at a proposal by Sweet Home Sanitation to provide a household hazardous waste program.
Sweet Home Sanitation has been seeking new, cost-effective ways to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in the landfill for years, said Scott Johnson, district manager. Household hazardous waste is an issue that has been discussed for multiple years without any solution.
Johnson presented his proposal during the council’s regular meeting.
Sweet Home Sanitation is proposing an annual household hazardous waste event at the Sweet Home Transfer Facility, Johnson said. To pay for it, Sweet Home Sanitation will have to add a monthly surcharge of 59 cents to bills.
That assumes that all of the communities it serves agree to participate, Johnson said. If they don’t, the monthly surcharge would be higher.
The surcharge would cover the costs associated with disposal, marketing and event management, Johnson said. Residential customers would be permitted to drop off up to 300 pounds of non-paint material at no additional charge. A limited amount of paint material and electronics would be accepted in accordance with the Oregon Paint Care and Electronics Recycling programs.
Among the hazardous waste items commonly found in homes are adhesives, latex- and oil-based paints, paint thinners and strippers, grease and rust solvents, wood and metal cleaners, nail polish removers and cosmetics, household polishes and cleaners, oven cleaners, drain openers, lighter fluids, fungicides and wood preservatives, insecticides, herbicides, rat poisons, used oil and oil filters, fuel injection and carburetor cleaners, antifreeze and batteries.
Improper disposal of hazardous waste can result in serious illness or injury to humans and animals, and they can cause serious damage to the environment and groundwater, Johnson said. It’s also illegal to dispose of hazardous waste in the trash, down storm drains or onto the ground.
Sweet Home Sanitation is budgeting $30,000 for the program, Johnson said. Sweet Home is about half of the cost.
Johnson said this is a separate fee not a rate change.
City Manager Craig Martin said he and the city attorney would look at the franchise agreement with Sweet Home Sanitation to determine whether it requires an ordinance revision to impose the charge.
City Attorney Robert Snyder asked Johnson why Sweet Home Sanitation just doesn’t charge a fee to users at the gate, so persons without hazardous waste do no have to pay.
The program will have fixed costs, and Sweet Home Sanitation doesn’t know what volume to expect, Johnson said.
Sweet Home Sanitation will incur $30,000 in expenses, Martin said. If it’s based on the gate and it doesn’t bring in enough revenue, then Sweet Home Sanitation could take a loss of up to $30,000.
The council agreed that it was worth taking a look at the program. Present were Greg Mahler, Craig Fentiman, Mayor Jim Gourley, Dave Trask and Bruce Hobbs.
In other business, the council:
– Received a copy of the final draft of the city’s Emergency Operation Plan for review.
Sweet Home was among the few to develop a plan, approved by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2002, in Linn County, Martin said. Later, Linn County received a grant to complete a plan for the county. A year ago, consultants contacted the city, and Sweet Home’s plan was altered to be more consistent with the county’s.
– Received a draft of the council’s goals for 2013 for review. The council may alter them and then may approve them at the next regular meeting on March 26.
– Received an update about changes to the city manager’s contract.
The council has overridden the contract several times since Martin was hired in 1997. The new contract will reflect those changes. It will match vacation accruals to the rest of the city’s employees, and it provides a 6-month severance package if the city manager is released without cause. The current contract has a 3-month severance package. The new contract also includes minor wording changes.
– Approved amendments to the city’s ordinance pertaining to peddlers, solicitors and merchants following the third and final reading of the proposed ordinance revisions.