NIAGARA COUNTY
A permanent place for unsafe waste
LOCKPORT — Niagara County is planning to install three permanent receptacles for household hazardous waste, one in each of the county’s three cities.
Refuse District Director Richard P. Pope said Thursday that he also is applying to the state for permission to hold a drop-off day for old medications, which is tentatively set for Oct. 25 at Mount St. Mary’s Hospital in Lewiston.
The district also opened an electronics recycling center here last week for free disposal of old computers, monitors, printers, phones, copiers, televisions and stereos.
County Legislator John D. Ceretto, RLewiston, chairman of the Refuse District board, said the Lockport landfill is becoming an all-around recycling hub. Last year it recycled 18,000 pounds of tires, 2,000 pounds of old batteries, 72,000 pounds of steel and 100 propane cylinders, and removed freon from old refrigerators, freezers and air conditioners for a small fee.
“We are presently recycling 20,000 cubic yards of tree wood from the October storm in 2006 into a compost product designed for residential use, which will be available to Niagara County residents next spring,” Ceretto said.
Pope said the household hazardous waste bins are to be installed at the district’s main landfill on the Lockport Bypass; the Niagara Falls Corporation Yard, 1785 New Road; and the North Tonawanda Public Works garage, 758 Erie Ave.
The district has applied for a permit from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, and once it’s received, the county will no longer hold occasional drop-off days for old paint, pesticides, solvents and other household hazards.
Pope said the steel bins will be about 60 feet long, 8 feet high and 12 feet deep. He said once the district wins its DEC permit, it will seek bids from private contractors to supply the bins and tend to their contents.
“They’re going to have to find a safe facility to dispose of the material,” Pope said.
Each unit must have a sump system to control spills, and all three sites will have 24-hour surveillance, either by a guard or by video. Pope said he expects to be able to seek bids in the fourth quarter of this year and open the sites in 2009.
DEC spokeswoman Megan Gollwitzer said, “This is a positive project. We applaud the efforts of the county to address household hazardous waste and pharmaceuticals.”
Gollwitzer said the DEC is asking the county to answer some technical questions before granting the permit. Also, the county was required to hold public meetings in each of the three cities. Pope said the last of those was held Wednesday at the Lockport landfill.
As for the pharmaceutical drop-off, Pope said pharmacists and police must be stationed at the site, because controlled substances may be involved. He said cooperation has been lined up from the Western New York Pharmacists’ Association, the Niagara County Sheriff’s Office and the Lewiston Police.
Pope said old medications should not be flushed down the toilet, because they contribute to water pollution.
Gollwitzer said once the county’s request is reviewed, a permission letter would be signed by the DEC’s regional director.
