County to rebid garbage pick up contracts
MARK SCHUMANN
Winter Beach convenience collection center
With Commissioner Tim Zorc changing his mind, the Indian River County Commission voted 3-2 today to reject a staff proposal to close the county’s least used garbage collection center.
The planned Jan. 5 closing of the Winter Beach collection center, located at 3955 65th St., would have saved an estimated $250,000 a year. That money was to be re-allocated to help expand the county’s recycling program.
The county is lagging behind in its effort to meet a 2020 state mandate to recycle 75 percent of collected garbage. Currently, the county is only recycling 37 percent of all that is taken to the landfill.
According to Utility Director Vincent Burke, less than 10 percent of all the material brought to the landfill comes through the county’s five convenience centers. Last year, Burke said, $1.2 million in tax money was needed to subsidize the collection centers. He explained all county taxpayers, not just those using the convenience collection centers, pay toward the annual subsidy.
At least in the minds of Commissioners Wesley Davis, Joe Flescher and Tim Zorc, the projected savings of $250,000, and the opportunity to expand the county’s recycling program were outweighed by the protests of more than 100 residents, most from Winter Beach, who turned out to argue the closing would cause people to toss household garbage, oil, old electronics and other debris into roadside canals and vacant lots.
The nearest collection station to Winter Beach is five miles south on 41st Street between 43rd Avenue and 58th Avenue.
Commissioners Peter O’Bryan and Bob Solari voted against keeping the 65th Street collection center open. Solari said adding $250,000 in funding to the county’s recycling program would show state officials the Commission is marking a serious effort to meet the 2020 mandate.
Trash-hauling contracts out for bid
County residents, who now pay higher rates for garbage collection than residents with the City of Vero Beach, may see their garbage collection bills drop later this year. Waste Management, serving the north county and Treasure Coast Refuse, serving the south county, both charge rates above Vero Beach’s municipally owned solid waste utility. The two trash haulers serving the County are to submit revised proposals by Feb. 20 for new seven-year contracts to take affect Oct. 1.
County Utility Director Vincent Burke went before the Vero Beach City Council in early September asking the Council to consider joining with the County is seeking new bids from Waste Management and Treasure Coast Refuse. City officials balked at Burke’s request, pointing out the Vero Beach already offers what they contend is better service at lower rates.
Waste Management and Treasure Coast Refuse have both been asked to propose options for increasing recycling rates, while keeping costs down. Those options may include going to once per week pickup.
Burke said going to a single stream for recyclables, rather staying with the current two-bin system, would improve recycling rates. Residents would be asked to place all recyclables in a single 65-gallon wheeled container. In addition to being easier for residents, the so-called “single stream recycling” system reduces labor expense, because the 65-gallon containers can be emptied into garbage trucks with automated lift arms. The smaller blue bins must be loaded manually.
A single-stream system, though, will require manual sorting of recyclables or the purchase of expensive sorting machines. As an alternative, County staff is to study the feasibility of building a materials recovery facility to receive and sort incoming recyclables.
$50,950 approved for study
The County Commission Jan. 6 approved $50,950 for a study to be done by Kessler Consulting, to look at possible changes to be made to the County’s garbage collection and recycling services. The study, to be paid by the county’s Solid Waste District, will also look at private vendor interests in providing garbage and recycling pickup services in the unincorporated areas of the county.
Indian River Guardian 