Earlier this month, the Washington County Board of Supervisors approved a lease with an option to buy of the five county owned transfer stations with Earth, Waste and Metal, a Vermont company.
Most Huletts residents are familiar with the Whitehall transfer station and may be asking what effect this transfer will have for residents that dispose of their trash there.
The county lost a combined $600,000 on the five transfer stations in 2012 and had been in talks for some time to privatize the transfer stations.
Earth, Metal and Waste, a company which operates a number of transfer stations in Vermont, will lease the facilities under a five- year agreement that includes a purchase option.
The supervisors voted 17-0 to approve the agreement which will see the county receive $5,000 per month to lease the stations with 60% of the lease payment credited toward the $1.47 million purchase price if the company chooses to buy the stations within 12 months. If the company exercises the right to buy after the first 12 months, a lower portion of the rental proceeds would apply to the purchase price.
I spoke to Dresden Town Supervisor, Bob Banks, and learned that the official date that the agreement will go into effect will be June 1st. That is when Earth, Waste and Metal will begin operating the Whitehall transfer station. They will continue to accept transfer stickers previously purchased from the town clerk and will also have a cash register on site. Stickers that were previously purchased should be good for at least another year. Supervisor Banks sees additional hours being added to the station during the summer months.
“This company is big into recycling,” stated Supervisor Banks, “they will do a good job and residents of the town will be happy.”