Yuba-Sutter Recology ends hazardous waste pick ups – few used service
The household hazardous waste dropoff site is open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays at 134 Burns Drive, Yuba City.
Making a call to have your hazardous waste removed won't be available after the end of the month, largely because not enough people have called.
With far fewer appointments than Yuba-Sutter Recology officials had hoped to receive when the program started a year and a half ago, a grant won't be renewed and much of what is left returned to the state, according to Keith Martin, administrator for the Regional Waste Management Authority.
"They found demand was much less than anticipated," Martin said Monday. "There's always an unmet need, but the question is how responsible is it to meet that need?"
When Recology and the authority received the $137,295 grant from CalRecycle in 2011, the idea was to give an option to the housebound who might struggle to get to an established hazardous waste drop-off site in Yuba City.
Jackie Sillman, Recology's public education coordinator, said she spread the word through advertising and speaking at senior centers and elsewhere. But while Recology initially hoped to get five to 10 appointments a week, it only averaged about two, she said.
"I think we are constantly looking at other avenues," said Sillman, adding Recology has had places people can drop off old batteries, for example. "I just don't think door-to-door is one that will work for us."
About $90,000 left over from the grant will be returned to the state, Martin said.
The end of the program means dropping items off at the Yuba City site — which is free, but only open on Saturdays — will be the only way to dispose of such waste.
A few years ago, the Waste Management Authority also had a grant to look at establishing a similar dropoff site in Yuba County, and identified a potential location near the airport. Problems with a nearby railroad crossing proved intractable, and Martin said the idea is dead for now.
"The grant we had was site specific," he said. "We'd really have to start over if we wanted to try again."
CONTACT Ben van der Meer at bvandermeer@appealdemocrat.com or 749-4786.
Items deemed hazardous
• Used batteries.
• Paint, pesticides, oil and other fuels.
• Electronic waste such as televisions, computer monitors and laptops and radios.
• Dishwasher detergent, cleaning products, fluorescent light bulbs and lamps and thermostats.
• A list can be found at yubasutterrecycles.com.
