The town currently has a fee schedule that takes into consideration the size of the truck carrying demolition debris to the landfill and where the fee is paid.

For example, a small pickup truck load of demolition-construction material carries a $15 fee while a load in a dual-wheel truck carries a $30 charge if these fees are paid at the town office. The fees are doubled if paid to the landfill attendant, a move that allows residents to dump at the facility when the landfill is open but the town office is closed.

The loophole, however, occurs with partial loads of construction-demolition debris, which as a courtesy, can be dumped at no charge, according to Greenville Town Manger John Simko. It seems that now truckers seldom carry full loads to avoid the fee.

"What we're seeing is our Dumpsters are filling up rapidly and we're collecting very little money," Simko said Monday. "This well-intentioned system is just not working."

The fees charged at the landfill help offset the $105 per ton cost of trucking the material to a licensed facility in Norridgewock. That per-ton cost for construction-demolition debris does not include the cost of compacting the material or the town employees' time, he said.

An ad hoc committee, which was asked by selectmen to make recommendations to improve the solid waste management fee system, made one quick recommendation that was supported by selectmen last week. Effective Jan. 1, the dumping of partial loads will no longer be free.

"This move is solely because we're getting little recovery of our costs," Simko said.

The committee is continuing to review some proposed long-term recommendations that include the following:

• The use of a common form for fee collection at the recycling center and landfill.
• Allow landfill and recycling attendants (for household hazardous waste) to determine the value and calculate the cost of the disposal of loads.
• Consider the use of clear bags for all waste deposited at the landfill
• Continue to work on solutions for the disposal of wood waste.
• Develop one comprehensive solid waste management ordinance.
• Create office space for attendants.
• Develop an educational program before and after implementation of any new regulations.

Before selectmen make any further solid waste management changes, a public hearing will be held early next year, Simko said. Comments from residents are encouraged, he said.
"This content originally appeared as a copyrighted article in the Tuesday, December 12, 2006 edition of the Bangor Daily NEWS and is used here with permission."