Some Harvey County residents are left in a pickle. County law requires them to recycle, but a trash hauler recently discontinued service.
Cecil Fanning, a rural Newton resident, found himself searching for other options following the cut off from Waste Connections, his trash hauler.
“Now they just sent us a letter saying they don’t do recycling any more,” he said.
Fanning spoke to county commissioners at their Monday meeting. He presented them with information as well as his trash bills. He noted that his trash bill was $90 before the change by Waste Management and had dropped down to $60 following the company dropping recycling service in Harvey County.
County Administrator Anthony Swartzendruber gave commissioners a brief summary of county resolutions regarding recycling. Currently, county residents are required to remove recyclables from their trash going to the county dump. He said that Waste Connections should be part of that process.
“We’re going to continue to emphasize that they have to provide recycling services in the county,” he said. “But it’s on the residents, the way the resolution was passed. It’s up to the residents to recycle.”
(Read more: Newton Now)