New Waste Management Plan Approved at Kent City Council Meeting
Words by: Tyler Haughn
Kent City Council convened Wednesday, March 20th, at the Main Fire Station to witness the first action on the agenda for the evening– the official swearing-in of Kent Police officers Nicholas Shearer, Jason Short and Jared Bowen by Chief of Police Michelle Lee.
Nicholas Shearer is the new Police Captain and currently oversees the entire Uniform Patrol Division. Jason short was promoted to Police Lieutenant and serves in the third shift of the patrol division. Jared Bowen was promoted to Police Sergeant and serves in the patrol division under lieutenant Short on third shift.
“I know I couldn’t be more proud of these officers as they are working their way up the ranks and I know the quality of these officers has made my job easier, so I appreciate that,” Lee said.
Friends and families of the three officers packed into the meeting room in support as they were officially recognized for their new promotions. All three officers had previously been promoted in January of this year but last night was officially unveiled before Mayor Fiala and took their oaths to faithfully serve the constitution of the United States, the constitution of Ohio and the charter of Kent, Ohio.
The council members then proceeded to begin their hearings and the meeting moved forward without any debate concerning the items listed on the agenda. The items that were quickly approved on the agenda included the transfer of a Trex liquor license for Twisted Root, the proposal of the first annual Kent craft beer festival and an ordinance about proposed changes to Portage County Solid Waste Management District.
The city council spent the majority of its time discussing the new changes that have been applied to the 2019 Solid Waste Management Plan as required by the Ohio Revised Code. This is the first update since the plan was first established in 2015 with a projected plan of action for the next decade. The updates will be enacted every three years.
Melanie Baker, Service Director for the City of Kent, said the most important detail in the new Waste Management Plan is to contend with Portage County’s increase in recycling. Baker said many citizens who wish to recycle do not understand how to properly prepare their waste items so they can be reused later. Many items sent out by households to be recycled do not end up being reused.
“The biggest thing that is urgent right now is the volatility of the market and the loss of being able to recycle stuff,” Baker said. “The fact that things have to become so clean now really limits how much can be recycled because if it gets to a transfer station and it is considered contaminated, then we actually have to pay for that dumping and then it goes to landfills. So the entire recycling market right now is in a little bit of a shake-up until it is determined how these things will be handled.”
The Portage County Solid Waste Management District estimates Portage County will produce around three million tons of recycling waste over the next ten years.
The changes in the 2019 draft include continuing the use of private contractors performing curbside recycling, renewal of the district’s Transfer Station license with the state of Ohio for the station located on Mogadore Road, as well as a full financial review of the operations to take place in the next seven to eight years. As part of the 2019 drafted plan, The Solid Waste Management District will actively monitor all solid waste activities in Portage County, requiring all solid waste transporters to register in order to avoid trash and recyclable materials mixing together.
Baker was in charge of reading the changes described in the new Waste Management Plan draft, which is over 100 pages long, and summarizing the revisions and how they will benefit Portage County. You can view the entire document here:
Baker said the plan has been approved quickly as many residents throughout the county are converting to curbside recycling and are interested in effective waste management as a resource.
“There was no opposition to this plan at this particular point and it does appear that quite a few communities throughout portage county are also passing it,” Baker said.
Baker said there are many misconceptions the general public have about recycling. In order for an item to actually be recycled, it must be clean and not contaminated by any substance.
“Contamination is such a huge issue and most people don’t understand it,” Baker said. “You might have a pizza box that is perfectly recyclable but if there is any grease, cheese or anything on the inside it is considered contaminated and therefore, cannot be recycled. So you teach people how to properly prepare those before they put them in the bin.”
Baker said educating the estimated 160,000 people who live throughout Portage County is going to be the biggest challenge in all of this.
“Education is going to be our biggest hurdle we are going to have to get over with residents, people in general and everything out and about,” Baker said.
Print story: Tyler Haughn
Melanie Baker interview by: Tyler Haughn
Featured image by: Tyler Haughn
All photographs by: Tyler Haughn
Video by: Morgan Dunlop
