Recycling & Sanitation Commission

Recycling and Sanitation Commission Minutes of the Monthly Meeting July 19, 2017 Commission Members and Others in Attendance: Pete Bowlus J A Burke ( Representative of Mount Airy Messenger) John Cavell ( Representative of J and J Trash Services) Mike Dixon Peggy Fleming Tom Neff Jason Poirier (Council Liaison) Jim Stargel (Chairman) Mary VanMetre (Town Staff) Ken Humble was not in attendance 1. Chairman Jim Stargel called the meeting to order and led all in the Pledge of Allegiance 2. Chairman Jim Stargel introduced the Commission's new council liaison Jason Poirier. 3. March 2017 minutes were approved with motion by Tom Neff; second by Pete Bowlus; motion carried. 4. Citizen's Comments - No citizens were present a. Mary VanMetre reported the town has been receiving calls regarding the handling of trash cans. She reported the Town public works staff has replaced the wheel assemblies on 12 toters. b. Pete Bowlus noted trash cans are still being placed in front of mail boxes and this creates a problem for the mail carriers. Pete requested Councilman Poirier to make mention that citizens should not place their trash in front of their mail boxes. Jason said he would do so. c. John Cavell noted he has spoken to his staff, but he will do so again. d. Mike Dixon requested to see one of the broken wheel assemblies to try to determine if only the axle was broken e. Chairman Stargel noted the Frederick County recycling pickups were running late today. f. Chairman Stargel also noted per his observations the drivers are obeying the stop signs and speed limits. 5. Recycling App a. Mary VanMetre reported as of June 30 there are 44 subscribers to the Recycle Coach app b. There have been 341 views of the app; Will review numbers at September meeting c. It was suggested to post a You Tube video of how to download and setup the app to be place on the Town website 4. Councilman Poirier will also promote the Recycle Coach app at the Town Council meeting. 6. Shred Event a. Chairman Stargel thanked all who came out to help at the June 24 shred event. Special thanks to Mike Dixon and Kathy Balderson for not only collecting batteries, but helping with the shredding also. b. Mary VanMetre reported 14,000 pounds of shred was collected during the three hour period. It was a huge success and it was open to all. c. Mike Dixon reported he collected 2,000 pounds of batteries. d. Special thanks to Councilman Poirier for placing the signs to advertise the shred and battery event. It was noted four signs are missing and could not be found. 7. Bulk Pick Up a. Mary VanMetre reported the Bulk Pickup of April 29th collected 15.34 tons. b. The separate metal truck collected $150 worth of metal and the Town received $75 c. Mr. Cavell noted the separate metal truck keeps the large appliances out of the landfill and no tipping fees. 8. Downtown Recycling Center and Downtown Events (MAMSA) a. Mary VanMetre reported the Farmers Market located in the town municipal lot leaves their trash in bags which is then collected by the Town Public Works employees and disposed of in the Town dumpsters. b. Chairman Stargel will contact Main Street Manager, Ashley Collier and MAMSA to invite them to the September meeting to discuss downtown events and trash collection.  c. Mr. Cavell noted J and J would rent a front end dumpster at $125 for special events d. Peggy Fleming questioned if MAMSA has the town collecting the trash for the Farmers Market, is that their expectation for other downtown events? d. Mary VanMetre noted in the past downtown event sponsors took care of the trash and not the Town. e. Several Commission members walked to Municipal lot to observe amount of trash left by the Farmers Market. 9. Commission Vacancies a. Chairman Stargel reported two commission members have resigned due to family obligations. b. Mike Dixon noted Kathy Balderson who helped at the Shred event was interested in joining. c. Councilman Poirier noted she will need to contact Colleen Reilly to request an application.. 10. Recycling and Sanitation Facebook page a. Chairman Stargel asked how the commission felt on having their own Facebook page. b. After discussion, it was decided the Commission does not need its own Facebook page. 11. Report from July 12 Commissions Master Plan Meeting a. Chairman Stargel attended the meeting and reported on the Commission's accomplishments and future goals. b. He also reported on the Green Team which has turned in its application with 225 points (150 points required). The Team is waiting to hear if Mt. Airy has been accepted as a certified Maryland sustainable community. Once it has been certified, then the Town will be eligible for grants through the program. 12. Pete Bowlus asked now that we have a police force if the Commission could do a drug collection in the fall. a. The Town police station is to be open October 1st. The fall National Drug Take Back Day is October 28. b. It was also noted the Commission had in the past budgeted for a drug collection box. Would the police be interested in housing and handling a permanent drug collection box? c. Chairman Stargel asked Pete Bowlus to discuss the drug collection with Police Chief Doug Reitz 13. Landfill Tonnage Figures a. Mary VanMetre had previously reported the landfill tonnage had dropped when we switch from Key Sanitation to Bates/Unity. In researching, there was no explanation for the decrease. b. Now the Town has switched from Bates/Unity to J and J, the landfill tonnage is back at the same amounts as when Key Sanitation was the hauler. c. Mary said the only conclusion is the Bates/Unity invoicing was full of errors and it was difficult to get accurate landfill figures. She feels the tonnage has remained constant and it was the poor accounting of Bates/Unity that was cause of the "reduced" tonnage. 14. Household Trash Limits a. John Cavell of J and J questioned the Town's limit of 120 gallons of trash per household. He feels it is too much as households should be recycling more. b. Mr. Cavell suggested the Town supply 65 or 90 gallon trash toters and that is all a household could put out for pickup. c. Mary VanMetre will get copy of the ordinance and it will be discussed at the September meeting. 15. Meeting adjourned with motion by Jim Stargel. 16. Next Regular Meeting - September 20, 2017 @ 7 p.m. SUMMARY OF ACTION ITEMS: • Chairman Jim Stargel to contact Ashley Collier and MAMSA and invite them to September meeting • Mary VanMetre to send Residential Trash Ordinance to Secretary Fleming • Pete Bowlus to contact Police Chief Reitz regarding a Drug Collection event • Secretary to add Council Liaison report to the meeting agenda • Addendum: Mary VanMetre has sent the Collection and Disposal of Trash to Secretary Peggy Fleming, Secretary