County residents seeing red over blue cart recycling plan
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BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — Thousands of Kern County residents could be included in a new mandatory recycling program. Some say they don't want to pay an additional fee to the county, and they don't want to lose the money they get from recycling on their own.
"I don't want to be forced into doing it," one man told Eyewitness News. The Rosedale area man didn't want to be identified.
That's part of the county in metropolitan Bakersfield, where officials hope to launch what they call a "universal collection area."
Currently, the county has voluntary curbside recycling for residents in these areas. Officials say about 2,300 households use the current "blue cart" program, and it recycles about 800 tons a year.
But, why do they want all county residents in this area in the program?
"The short answer is, we need more recycling," county Waste Management director Doug Landon said. He said the county needs more recycling, because the state has upped their requirements for keeping waste out of landfills.
The state originally required counties and cities to recycle 50 percent of their waste, but Landon said that will rise to 75 percent by 2020. The county predicts under its proposal there would be an additional 8,000 tons of recycling.
In the last week or so, affected residents started getting notices about the plan, including the fees they'd be charged on their property taxes. For the typical house that would be $245.64 a year.
But, Landon said that's the total proposed charge for all waste disposal services: the brown garbage bin, the green bin for yard waste and a new recycling bin.
"The additional charge for the blue cart service to the existing services is about $36," Landon said.
Another county resident said that's not a lot to pay, but he still has concerns.
"It's not a great expense," Steve Hill told Eyewitness News. "But there's a lot of people on fixed incomes that don't need any additional expense."
He also said many people don't want to give up what they can earn by recycling things like bottles and cans themselves.
Landon said county residents could still do that, but it would make sense to put other recycling materials into the county program blue bins. Things like cardboard boxes and junk mail aren't often taken to recycle centers, but the county would make use of those in their bigger operation.
"That really maximizes, increases, the total amount of recycling that's getting done," Landon said.
Other residents complain they don't want another bin next to the house or in the back yard. And some argue storing sticky bottles and cans in a blue bin for two weeks will be messy and smelly.
Landon said environmental health officials have determined it's safe and appropriate to keep recycle materials for two weeks. That's how often the blue carts would be picked up, according to the county.
The brown and green bins would still be picked up every week. That's what the county voluntary program does now, and it's the same as Bakersfield's program.
The city also started with a curbside recycling program that residents could sign up for, and they are now expanding that to all city residents.
Under the county plan, the new fee would be included on residents' property tax bill. That would be another change for some people, and the notices attempt to explain that.
"If you presently have garbage collection services but have not previously been included in the tax roll billing process, this proposed fee would replace the amount you currently pay the garbage collection company," the notice reads.
One more complaint from some residents is that the protest hearing for the recycling proposal will be on Nov. 13 at 2 p.m.
Some argue that's a tough time for people to show up at a meeting. However, on Thursday, Landon told Eyewitness News an evening public meeting will be set up sometime during the week of Oct. 22.
Some 43,000 county households could be included in the new plan. Some residents remain unconvinced about the proposal, but Landon says it would help the county be more responsible and avoid stiff state fines if it missed the tougher state requirements.
"The penalty that's always been hanging over each jurisdiction's head is $10,000 a day," Landon said. "Certainly one of our goals is to meet state regulations. But another goal is to be as environmentally responsible as possible."
"I don't want to be forced into doing it," one man told Eyewitness News. The Rosedale area man didn't want to be identified.
That's part of the county in metropolitan Bakersfield, where officials hope to launch what they call a "universal collection area."
Currently, the county has voluntary curbside recycling for residents in these areas. Officials say about 2,300 households use the current "blue cart" program, and it recycles about 800 tons a year.
But, why do they want all county residents in this area in the program?
"The short answer is, we need more recycling," county Waste Management director Doug Landon said. He said the county needs more recycling, because the state has upped their requirements for keeping waste out of landfills.
The state originally required counties and cities to recycle 50 percent of their waste, but Landon said that will rise to 75 percent by 2020. The county predicts under its proposal there would be an additional 8,000 tons of recycling.
In the last week or so, affected residents started getting notices about the plan, including the fees they'd be charged on their property taxes. For the typical house that would be $245.64 a year.
But, Landon said that's the total proposed charge for all waste disposal services: the brown garbage bin, the green bin for yard waste and a new recycling bin.
"The additional charge for the blue cart service to the existing services is about $36," Landon said.
Another county resident said that's not a lot to pay, but he still has concerns.
"It's not a great expense," Steve Hill told Eyewitness News. "But there's a lot of people on fixed incomes that don't need any additional expense."
He also said many people don't want to give up what they can earn by recycling things like bottles and cans themselves.
Landon said county residents could still do that, but it would make sense to put other recycling materials into the county program blue bins. Things like cardboard boxes and junk mail aren't often taken to recycle centers, but the county would make use of those in their bigger operation.
"That really maximizes, increases, the total amount of recycling that's getting done," Landon said.
Other residents complain they don't want another bin next to the house or in the back yard. And some argue storing sticky bottles and cans in a blue bin for two weeks will be messy and smelly.
Landon said environmental health officials have determined it's safe and appropriate to keep recycle materials for two weeks. That's how often the blue carts would be picked up, according to the county.
The brown and green bins would still be picked up every week. That's what the county voluntary program does now, and it's the same as Bakersfield's program.
The city also started with a curbside recycling program that residents could sign up for, and they are now expanding that to all city residents.
Under the county plan, the new fee would be included on residents' property tax bill. That would be another change for some people, and the notices attempt to explain that.
"If you presently have garbage collection services but have not previously been included in the tax roll billing process, this proposed fee would replace the amount you currently pay the garbage collection company," the notice reads.
One more complaint from some residents is that the protest hearing for the recycling proposal will be on Nov. 13 at 2 p.m.
Some argue that's a tough time for people to show up at a meeting. However, on Thursday, Landon told Eyewitness News an evening public meeting will be set up sometime during the week of Oct. 22.
Some 43,000 county households could be included in the new plan. Some residents remain unconvinced about the proposal, but Landon says it would help the county be more responsible and avoid stiff state fines if it missed the tougher state requirements.
"The penalty that's always been hanging over each jurisdiction's head is $10,000 a day," Landon said. "Certainly one of our goals is to meet state regulations. But another goal is to be as environmentally responsible as possible."
in the event that i will not be able to attend the meeting, i have composed the following letter. feel free to use it as well. protest letters must be received by Saturday November 11th.
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To: Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Kern County Board of Supervisors
               1115 Truxtun Avenue ATTN: Box BM
               Bakersfield, CA 93301
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From:Â Â Â (insert address here)
Â
Re: Universal Garbage Collection proposed fee
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Dear sirs and madams:
I am opposed to the proposed fee to add Source Separated (Blue Cart) recycling to waste collection services.Â
I am protesting this proposed fee and requesting the fee not be placed on the property tax roll.
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Thank you for your service in this matter.
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   DONT PAY NO ATTENSION TO THOSE LIBERAL    I.C.L.E.I. GLOBALIST..THERE JUST HERE TO SET THE TONE OF CONVERSATION.THIS IS NOTHING BIGGEST LAND GRAB EVER.,SMART METERS,TAXES OFF THE HOOK.UTILITIE PRICES OUT OF SITE WAKE UP PEOPLE THIS IS AGENDA 21 THE U,N, TAKE OVER OF ARE REPUBLIC .ALL IN THE NAME OF SAVING THE ENVIROMENT. LOOK THIS STUFF UP PEOPLE BEFORE WE LOOSE ANY MORE OF OUR RIGHTS ARE KIDS FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT BEHIND THE GREEN MASK YOU TUBE OR GOOGLE--- AGENDA 21---
I can't believe Kern County still doesn't have mandatory recycling. Most parts of Los Angeles and the Bay Area have had it for years. We truly are in the armpit of California. Time to play catch up.
Wait.... you just started curb side recycling? Are you living in the stone ages??
Boy, just another tax on our tax bill, way to go county! Our homes in Oildale are not large, so adding another can (which most of us with not even use) is just stupid. And how about our elderly? The make little or no trash, yet you want them to pay for collection on a blue can, and to top it off, add another can to clutter up the property. If anyone is smart enough, please re-read your notices. For the fiscal year 2013-2014, the fee for this unwanted collection is $20.47 per month. So, I guess the county is not being to realistic. I cannot afford that, nor can many folks in my area. I recycle just about everything now to bring in extra income, why should I give that to the county? Not to mention all the homeless people that depend on the recyclable items in our daily trash to feed their families. I do not want this collection, nor will I use it. I am not going to have an extra trash can in my home for recycleable items, plus my regular trash! COME ON GET REAL OUT THERE! Please everyone try and make the meetings, if you cannot make it to the meetings, please mail in your statement received with your signature protesting this issue.
Wow, the people in this town continue to surprise me with how....what is a nice way to put this "not smart" they are. If you want to keep collecting your cans go right ahead, but what are you doing with your paper, cardboard, plastics 1-7, soup cans?? Your just throwing it away! Bakersfield and Kern county are one of the few places left in the west coast that does not recycle. The blue can price will only equal $3.00 more a month is all, and some people will hopefully get rid of their extra brown can.
Leave are arm pit. And go get your I.C.L.E.I. pay check.On the way to the United Nation war machine .What a joke you are. U sold your soul to the devil himself. This global take over through the enviroment movement .to save mother earth.Save it for them to do whatever they plz.They dont give a crap about the enviroment. They dont say crap about the tree's all dead.from chemtrails spraying. PH way up. aluminum 100 ppm normal came back 61-63,000 ppm .toxic.That was at MT. Shasta. Look it up.Dont worry time you wake up. To the reality of what happened. Be to late.So you got to look this stuff up.And spread the truth or get your Communitarianism, Sustainability ,wet lands Eugenics ,loving butTTTT OUT OF HERE
You live here too, so I guess that makes you "not smart" according to your own post.
@Justin Bullard Boy are you out of the loop! If you read the notice during the year 2012-2014 the fee would be $20.47 per month!!!!!!! Most of us do not have the room to store an extra can, so where do we leave it, in the street? How about the elderly that don't have much waste, what are they going to do? There are alot of unseen issues with this "mandatory" collection. I say everyone go to the meetings, and raise your concerns. The county is only thinking about money, what about sense?
@Daffimonkey - No, you don't know what you're talking about. The total taxes would increase to $245.64 per year. Approximately $36 of that amount will go towards the blue cart which accounts to $3 per month (less than a gallon of gas!). The rest of that above amount pays for the brown and green cart. As usual, all of you are jumping to the most uneducated conclusions. Also, if any of you have ever taken a look at your current waste stream you would know that 75% of it IS RECYCLABLE! A simple rinse of a jar, can or bottle will keep the stink far away. Everything goes in oone cart so there's no sorting. And for those of you who cash in on your CRVs do so to your hearts content. The assumption is you won't put those in the cart anyway. This really isn't that complicated and not worth twisting your toes over. Have a bottle of wine and relax - but please recycle that bottle when you're done... If you don't mind!