Tox-A-Way Day set Oct. 1

The local solid waste district has a contract — and a date — for its annual household hazardous waste collection day.

Members of the Jay County Solid Waste District Board of Directors approved a contract with NuGenesis for the district’s Tox-A-Way day, which has been scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 1, at the Jay County Fairgrounds.

Although quotes submitted by four companies had not yet been reviewed by the district’s attorney, board members, acting on the recommendation of executive director Kay Hayes, hired NuGenesis at a cost of $24,000.

That cost is based on the same tonnage that was collected at last year’s event. If the tonnage increases, so will the fee.

Hayes said Monday that the trend over the last few years has been for the amount collected to decrease slightly each year.

In addition to the household hazardous waste collection, which takes such items as batteries, paint, motor oil, pesticides and other chemicals, the free dump day at the Jay County Landfill for county residents will also be held on Oct. 1, Waste Management district manager Leon Leach said Monday.

Also Monday, board members Gerald Kirby, Bill Gibson, Gary Theurer and Milo Miller Jr. approved claims totaling $22,420.04 — including year-end bonus checks for the groups that staff the district’s Saturday drop-off recycling sites.

As it has every year of the district’s operation, the Bloomfield Elementary School PTO collected the most recyclable items.

The bonuses were paid based on .5 cent for each pound collected, plus a 1 cent per-pound bonus for pounds increased over last year.

The bonus checks will be given to representatives from the groups next week at the Jay County Fair.

The top four checks went to: Bloomfield, $1,227; Madison Go-Getters 4-H Club, $483.48; Redkey Recycling, $441.70; and Girl Scouts, $426.40

Hayes and Miller asked fellow board members to consider manning the district’s booth sometime during the fair and/or to assist in handing out the bonus checks.

In other business Monday, the JCSWD board:

•Approved a second time for a first reading of the 2006 budget. An addition of $10,000 prior to the first reading in June made it necessary to repeat the first reading. The total budget requests are $223,960. Revenue is currently projected at about $215,000. The district has $132,148.01 in its checking account after paying the claims that were approved Monday.

•Learned that the district received $18,601 in tipping fee income in June. The district is funded through a $1.25 fee on each ton of trash dumped in the Jay County Landfill.

Leach said Monday that the volume should increase significantly in the next few months, as the Jay County Landfill will likely be the location where contaminated soil from clean-up of a Union City industrial site will be dumped.

Approximately 30,000 tons is expected to be dumped as part of the clean-up effort.

•Gave Hayes permission to explore the possibility of local students creating some type of a large art project using recyclable materials outside of district headquarters, located on the northwest corner of Ind. 67 and county road 400 South. The project could help bring attention to the district’s efforts to promote conservation and recycling, Hayes said.

•Asked Hayes to investigate the possibility of hiring a company to provide no-cost paper shredding for county residents and companies.

•Heard Kirby, a member of the Jay County Council, once again praise an infrastructure fund that is part of a host agreement between the Jay County Landfill and Jay County Commissioners.

The payment is 10 percent of gross gate revenue, or more than $400,000 annually at current levels. It is not connected with the waste district.

“Without that infrastructure fund, where in the thunder would (the county) be?” Kirby asked.

“We’d be in trouble like a lot of other counties,” answered Theurer, a commissioner.[[In-content Ad]]