Lewis County Judge Executive Steve Applegate and Solid Waste Coordinator John Teager announced that mandatory garbage collection for all county residents are coming.

The county ordinance regarding garbage pickup has been in effect since 1987. Teager said that to be in compliance with county ordinance 314, residents should have their garbage picked up anyway. The law has not been strictly enforced but new state laws will change that policy of leniency.

Applegate said, "It's a known fact that every county is the state is going to eventually be state-mandated for trash pickup."

He added that mandatory trash pickup provides a good service for the residents of the county. It eliminates the reason for anybody to dump garbage alongside the highway, or in illegal dumpsites or bringing it into town and using other people's Dumpsters.

"Basically," he asserted, "it's cleaning up the county." Applegate pointed out that the state is going to provide financial assistance for the program. He said that if the county is going to attract industry, the better our county looks the more apt we are to get people to come in here.

Applegate hopes that all the carriers will get together and basically charge the same rate countywide, and that will probably be about $12 per month.

The judge explained that hopefully the charge would be added to the resident's utility bill. That hasn't yet been arranged with the four providers of electricity in the county.

Teager pointed out that the city already has this. The trash pickup charge of $9 is part of the monthly utility bill.

Teager said that he has already cited probably 120 violators of the current county ordinance.

He said that once a citizen is cited for being in violation of the ordinance, they have 14 days to get in compliance by cleaning up and illegal dumpsite or illegal disposal at their residence.

The procedure calls for pictures to be taken at the time the citation is issued and then taken again after 14 days. He said that so far he has had to turn in only nine violators to the County Attorney.

Teager clarified that the citations are for either illegal dumpsites or improper disposal of trash at the residence.

He added that after 14 days give for compliance, the cited resident must show documented proof that the garbage was taken to the landfill or was picked up by a hauler with a valid permit. That procedure ensures that the person doesn't take the trash up a hollow and dump it. Proof also must be shown that the resident is on a weekly pickup by a permitted hauler.

He said that as of 2002, the census shows that Lewis County had 5,422 households. Currently carriers are picking up trash at 3,300 homes.

Teager said that last year the county paid $15,843 to clean up illegal dumpsites. He said that the county now has 21 large illegal dumpsites.

To clean them up will cost an estimated $130,081 but the state will reimburse the county if it qualifies by going mandatory up to the 85 percent required.

Meeting in special session last Wednesday, the Vanceburg City Council moved to submit a proposal to the Commonwealth of Kentucky to construct a building in the 800 block of Front Street fort he purpose of leasing the structure to the State Human Resources Department.

The move, however, was not made without opposition from three area businessmen.

Retired Attorney Avery Stanley and Ben Johnson both questioned whether the city should enter a venture that competes with local residents for rental business. Jim Shelton voiced the opinion that the council's proposal sends the wrong message to private enterprise in the city.

Council member Tim Bowden responded by saying that the motion merely means that the council will submit the proposal to the state. "It's not set in concrete," he said. "We may not get it."

Mayor William T. Cooper explained that the project might not be feasible if the state sends the proposal back to the city asking for changes in the construction. The current cost estimate is at $248,000, and if it exceeds $250,000 he said the city would have to drop the project.

Council member Angie Patton stated, "It is not the council's intention to compete. As a council member I'm concerned about helping the city."

The bids will be sealed and the mayor told Stanley that after the bids were opened by the state, the bid numbers could be made public, but not before then lest opposing bidders get an advantage.

The businessmen could submit bids for the lease as well as the city. All bids were to be submitted by Friday, April 25.

Cooper said that the tax base is so low in the city that the local government must find additional ways to raise revenue in order for the city to function.

Lewis County Solid Waste Coordinator reported that Commonwealth Cleanup week was a success in the community.

Teager said that 3,808 old tires were picked up along with 520 appliances, 355 bags of roadside litter and two dump truck loads of debris.

Four county organizations took part in the event during the week of March 22-28. The Solid Waste Department, the Lewis County Detention Center, the City of Vanceburg and the Kentucky Department of Transportation all pitched in to help.

A $3,000 grant from the Kentucky Division of Solid Waste helped offset the cost of the tire disposal. The county still had to contribute about $700 from county funds to complete that work.

Teager also reported that a new hauler's permit has been issued to Doug Zornes in the Laurel community. Anyone needing sanitation service in that area can call Zornes at 606-796-6707. The county now has eight sanitation carriers with valid permits to haul garbage.

The Solid Waste Coordinator said that only about 62 percent of county residents are having their household waste picked up by a permitted hauler. That figure must reach 85 percent by the end of the county's Five Year Solid Waste Plan to be in compliance with the state mandate.

He explained that the 2002 Solid Waste Report has been completed and mailed to the Division of Solid Waste Management in Frankfort for review.

In related matters, Teager announced that cleanup of an illegal dumpsite on Ky. Rt. 989 has been started. The Lewis County Conservation Service awarded the county a grant of $7,500 to help offset the cost of that project.

The local solid waste office has applied for grants from the Lewis County Conservation Service totaling $20,000 for cleanup of four other illegal dumpsites. They are located on Slate Hollow, Hazel Road, Union Mill Road and along State Rt. 8 west of Garrison. Notification of these grants is expected within 90 days.