KINGWOOD – The annual countywide Preston County ecycle event has been scheduled for Aug. 21 at the Kingwood Civic Center. More information will be available later.
Due to the amount of traffic at the events, board members discussed purchasing arrow signs to help direct traffic. Last year 226 vehicles dropped off electronics and other items.
The city provides employees to help with traffic flow and check identification. Only residents of Preston County are eligible to participate in the event.
“I’ll talk to the city about a truck to load CRT’s on,” Don Smith, who represents the Preston County Commission on the board, said. “We could charge a $5 fee for each TV no matter what the size. The money could be used for the tipping fee.”
City workers take the items to the transfer station the Monday after the events.
In other business, Aaron Barnes, asbestos inspector/project manager from EnviroTrac, gave board members information about the services the company offers. According to its web page “EnviroTrac is a consulting and contracting firm that provides turnkey environmental services throughout the country and abroad.”
One of the company’s specialties, Barnes said, is paint disposal.
“The board has talked about paint disposal,” Smith said. “That’s something we might look at later. A way for people to bring in old paint and dispose of it.”
He said he would find out if the solid waste grant would fund a paint removal day.
Litter Officer Jay Sowers asked if the solid waste grant would cover the purchase of a drone. He said the drone could be used to investigate areas he couldn’t physically get into.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Smith said. “It would be ideal to get into the backwood areas.” He asked Sowers to get information about drones for the next meeting.
Sowers said last year more people were involved in clean-up than before. He said the volunteers ranged in ages from teenagers to 70-year-olds.
“I have a lot of calls coming in about different sites (dumps). They (callers) are my eyes in the sky. This is a big county,” Sowers said. “Lots of people aren’t cooperating. I explain if you have 4 feet of snow, you can’t clean up your property. You do it when it’s not snowing.”
He said cleaning up is less expensive than a ticket, which can be up to $2,000, plus a civil penalty.
TWEET@DominionPostWV
