County commissioners approved a municipal waste management ordinance on June 12. It brings the county into compliance with state regulations, leaves recycling to municipalities, and will give haulers more options to dispose of trash collected in the county.

The county is required to review its waste management policies every 10 years, said Sally Tengeres, district manager of the Perry County Conservation District. The ordinance is part of that review that began in 2014.

“With each revision, it needs an implementing ordinance,” she said.

Municipalities agreed to pick up the recycling portion of the county’s waste management plan, Commissioner Brenda Benner said.

“That’s the major change, that we’re not doing recycling at the county level any more,” she said.

Tengeres said municipalities have been doing recycling since 2012, but the new ordinance makes that policy.

In the past, volunteers would help on specified recycling dates and the townships would provide the space for the containers. The county received grants from the state to buy the recycling containers, advertise and pay for contracts with haulers to take the recycling.

“That’s what became cost prohibitive,” Tengeres said.

The townships had a better idea on how to do recycling in their communities more efficiently, she said.

“It seems to be working well,” she said. “The townships know what best fits.”

The other major part of the ordinance is that waste haulers operating in the county will be able to take trash collected to any landfill that’s permitted and in good standing with the state. It’s called a “modified free market” system, Tengeres said.

Previously, the county determined which landfills would be allowed to accept waste collected in Perry and contracted with them.

Tipping fees then would come back to the county, but that system was declared illegal in the courts, Tengeres said. “We just want to assure that trash is going to a properly permitted landfill.”

The county now will look to improve communication with haulers and landfills to gain a better understanding of how much trash is being collected in the county.

To read the full story, visit http://www.pennlive.com/perry-county-times/index.ssf/2017/07/waste_ordinance_eases_limits_o.html.

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