By Paige Wright The City of Menard hosted a free city-wide cleanup at the local landfill on Saturday. The event allowed city residents, with proof of residency, to dump their household, construction and metal refuse at no charge. The day was scheduled to accept trash from 8 a.m. until 11:45 a.m., then back after lunch 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. Due to overwhelming response, the event was shut down early when all dumpster space was exhausted.
The event, like others prior, was funded by the Concho Valley Council of Government’s (CVCOG) Municipal Solid Waste Program. For this program, CVCOG receives funds from Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) specifically for waste management in the communities they serve. According to CVCOG Assistant Executive Director Erin Hernandez, the funds are then passed through to eligible entities via grant applications to run solid waste projects throughout the region. Hernandez noted that in the last cycle of grants (FY 2022), CVCOG awarded the City of Menard $25,500 for a series of community cleanups.
The first cleanup in the series funded from last fiscal year took place summer of 2022. Saturday was number two, and the third and final cleanup event in this series will be held in June. There was a similar free landfill day in October of 2022; however, it was funded by a different grant program.
In terms of waste collected, Saturday was a success. In terms of “client” satisfaction, there were problems. The six 30 yd roll-off dumpsters in place for the event were filled before noon, leaving no place for the line of vehicles awaiting their turn to offload their landfill cargo.
When the city was initially approved to host the cleanup, City Administrator Don Kerns requested 8 large dumpsters. Kerns based this estimate on cost, availability, and the fact that the October cleanup provided 6 dumpsters and filled just 3. The dumpsters are charged at full cost regardless of if they were used or not. Waste management firm Republic Services said they could provide 4 for Saturday. The compromise was 6 dumpsters. In stark contrast to the cleanup day last fall, the available dumpsters were quickly filled.
Incensed locals took to social media to vent their frustrations at the landfill closing early. Many were in line waiting to enter when the premature closure was announced, or on their way there. When asked for answers, Kerns laid it out: Between funding and equipment availability from Republic, in addition to other mitigating factors (Example- market rate for dumping the roll-offs by weight at San Angelo landfill), it is not feasible to break-up the cleanup dates by zoned addresses.
Additional dumpsters would be ideal. Kerns has already requested 10 dumpsters for the June date. Ultimately, the city is at the mercy of Republic Services and what they can or will provide.
To avoid being turned away due to reaching early capacity this summer, Kerns recommends planning your cleanup project once the June date is scheduled. Be loaded and ready, as there is simply no way to predict participation in the cleanup days.
“We appreciate the people who took advantage of the cleanup. That is a lot of trash that is now out of the city,” said Kerns.
Regular operating hours for the City Landfill are: Fridays and Saturdays; 8-12 and 1-4. The current rates for dumping at the city’s landfill is $10/yard for household trash; $80/yd for demolition debris. There is no charge for metal.
The city landfill continues to await the completion of a TCEQ permit that will allow the dump to initiate use of the brand new traditional underground pit for construction/demolition waste. At this time, the landfill (including use of roll-offs) is legally required to close if any amount of water is standing at the bottom of the unused pit. In response to the loss of pit use— partially due to lagging bureaucratic processes— the city has been utilizing the large roll-off dumpsters for regular landfill operation.
To learn more about the landfill’s pit permit and usability status, be sure to check next week’s The Menard News for explanation on that process.