By Scott Harvey
Commerce – The Commerce City Council Tuesday took no action on a resolution supporting a sustainable hazardous waste collection center in Hunt County.
The center would be equipped to accept disposal of paint, fertilizer, antifreeze, pesticides, and every day cleaners and chemicals. It would be the first county-wide consortium in the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Officials want to station the site in Greenville and open at least three times per month. Citizens wanting to dispose of items would need to obtain a voucher from their city of residence on a first come, first serve basis. Based on population, the City of Commerce would be allowed 252 vouchers to distribute to residents each year. The vouchers would allow a county resident to dispose of up to 20 lbs of hazardous waste at the site.
Commerce would pay an annual fee of $6,305. The site would cost all of Hunt County $60,125 each year.
The lack of motion by the Commerce City Council leaves the door open to revisit the item down the road. Council members said they would like some additional information on the site. They also felt the item was brought to their attention too close to budget, plus expressed confusion over the voucher system.
The site plans were established by Leadership Hunt County 2009. The group is seeking the support of all Hunt County cities, and will soon pursue a grant that they say would cover the initial start up costs of the project. If approved, officials hope to have the site established by spring, 2010.
The hazardous waste materials would be transported from the facility at least quarterly by an outside contractor.
The Greenville City Council in July approved a resolution supporting the collection center.