Scott County residents will be able to recycle through the county鈥檚 solid waste centers in approximately two months. The county Board of Supervisors voted 7-0 to approve a memorandum of understanding with Sullivan County Solid Waste. That document will allow the county鈥檚 solid waste operation to send recyclables 鈥� cardboard, paper, category 1-7 plastics and aluminum and steel cans 鈥� to the Sullivan recycling center.
Assistant County Administrator Bill Dingus said the MOU will being back county recycling after a seven-to-eight year hiatus. Cardboard recycling dumpsters have been at several of the county鈥檚 14 solid waste centers along with hoppers that now will be dedicated to plastic, paper and metal recycling. Dingus said recyclable collection could remove as much as 1,000 tons of solid waste a year from the garbage Scott County now hauls to the Waste Management landfill near Blountville.
Disposal at the landfill costs the county $47 per ton, he said, and diverting recyclables would eliminate that same cost per ton of material. The MOU will allow Scott County to dispose of materials at no cost as long as they ae sorted and not contaminated by other waste or materials. The county must monitor monthly quantities and types of material and ensure they are sorted and uncontaminated. Contaminated loads may be rejected.