Lake Ozark city officials are working to get dumpsters off The Strip and bring recycling options to businesses. An initiative pushed forward by new mayor Dennis Newberry, the city has been working with Lake Ozark Solid Waste Management to tackle long-standing trash-issues in the area, which draws the highest pedestrian traffic of any area at Lake of the Ozarks.
The problem: trash receptacles sitting in view (and smell) of the public, sometimes full to overflowing. The city says the number of trash dumpsters is inadequate to handle the volume of trash created by businesses as The Strip and the topography of the narrow street often prohibits trash dumpsters from being placed behind businesses. The city is also looking at implementing a commercial recycling program. About 85 percent of the weight of all trash material generated is considered recoverable (recyclable), so the city says this would help keep dumpsters from filling up so quickly. By separating the collection of recyclables from the existing waste contract with the city, the Solid Waste Management Region would be able to set up recycling within each business on a voluntary basis. Each participating business would be provided containers for glass, corrugated cardboard, and aluminum recycling.
A committee has been formed to review the existing sanitation system which is managed by Green For Life Environmental (GFL). The focus of the committee is to make recommendations for improvements such as aesthetics, recycling where practical, cost savings opportunities and available grants to offset improvement costs. Estimated setup cost could be as much as $67,250, with the city’s investment estimated at $49,000. To help bring in more revenue, the city would take over the billing for commercial accounts, under the current proposal. Currently, the city only bills for residential accounts and commercial businesses work directly with GFL.