Claflin will get 10 days to clean up its act next month.
The Barton County Commission learned Monday that Landfill Manager Mark Witt is working with Claflin, and hopefully with other Barton County communities, too, to encourage community clean ups again this year by cutting landfill rates.
Witt told the commission that the Claflin Clean-up is scheduled for April 1-10.
With Witt’s help, the clean-up will gather all sorts of items for disposal, but it will also collect items that will be recycled, keeping them out of the trash stream and extending the life of the landfill.
Witt explained that he’s working with the Claflin city staff to recycle electronic equipment, through the county’s e-waste program, which continues to remove computers, TVs, radios, and other electronic equipment from the landfill.
The community project will also be keeping tires and household hazardous waste out of the free collection.
The collection will, according to Witt, include regular household refuse and material that is appropriate for the construction and demolition site.
Witt noted the Claflin Clean-up will be done with the city charged only 50 percent of the regular dumping fee, and that is a deal that the commissioners previously approved for all communities in the county that choose to participate.
Last year, Witt was contacted by Hoisington, Ellinwood, Olmitz and Galatia, in addition to Claflin.
Great Bend does not conduct city clean ups.
It’s estimated that Claflin will save about $255 from the cost cut.
Witt noted the county more than makes up on the difference by helping to address the illegal dumping issues around the county, not to mention the improvement the programs provide to the over all condition of county communities. “This helps to keep the communities clean up,” Witt commented.
The county is also continuing to address illegal dumping and Witt said he’s communicating with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment about the use of long-range surveillance equipment to document illegal dumping in certain county locations.