PRESCOTT – Nevada County residents need to understand what is meant by trash under the terms of the new ordinance, passed by the Nevada County Quorum Court Thursday, Jan. 16.
Primarily, the ordinance establishes a system for collecting and disposing of solid waste generated in Nevada County, along with setting fees and procedures for it.
The ordinance defines commercial or maintenance waste, hazardous waste and permitted and prohibited solid waste.
For commercial or maintenance waste, the garbage is described as “A type of prohibited solid waste more particularly described as all vegetation, leaves, limbs, tree trunks, grass, debris and waste construction or maintenance materials including earth, rock, concrete plastics, and metal derived from construction.” Basically, anything that would best be put in the county’s Class IV landfill can’t be considered as trash to be picked up and taken to the Upper Southwest Solid Waste Authority’s landfill in Nashville.
It describes hazardous waste as waste or combination of wastes of solid, liquid, contained gaseous or semi-solid forms, which because of its quantity, concentration or physical chemical or infectious characteristics, may cause or contribute to an increase in mortality or serious irreversible or incapacitating illness. In a nutshell, it means people aren’t allowed to throw any kind of chemicals or herbicides, especially if they’re flammable or can blow up, into their household trash.
There’s a section defining specially handled waste, which is anything that belongs in a class IV landfill instead of a class I landfill. This includes such things as construction material, vending machines, refrigerators, heaters, lawn mowers, sofas and mattresses.
This ordinance applies to anyone owning a home, including a trailer park, in Nevada County, other than in Prescott or Emmet as these communities provide trash pickup for their residents.
Household garbage is permitted. Under the ordinance, this is described as paper, cardboard, tin, aluminum cans, glass and crockery used in normal household activities
It defines a residential unit as an occupied individual residence, household or other dwelling, including mobile home located on lands owned by the owner of the mobile homes, or located on lands owned by another. Basically, all mobile homes in a trailer park are subject to the ordinance and the owners of the trailers can either pay the fee or it can be collected by the owner of the park. As to permanent homes, all such structures on a parcel of land are subject to the fee.
The trash pickup fee will be $100 a year, or $8.33 a month. The fee can be paid all at once or in installments. Originally, the ordinance included a 2 percent penalty for late payment to be charged 15 days after the fee was due – the 30th of the month. However, the court amended the ordinance and removed all fees.
For those owning trailer parks or rental properties in the county, the owners are responsible for making sure the trash fee is paid. How it’s done is left up to the owner. It can either be added to the rent, or the renter can be required to pay if. Should landowners not pay the fee, it will be placed on their property taxes and they won’t be able to get tags for their vehicles until it’s paid.
The Nevada County Solid Waste System will notify all property owners of the requirements for making payments of these new trash bills.
The ordinance also includes fines for anyone who violates the ordinance. The perpetrator can be convicted of a misdemeanor and fined not less than $100 or more than $500 for each violation for the first day, and each day or part of day during the time the violation occurs is a new violation. However, after the second day, and each day thereafter, the maximum fine shall not exceed $250 per day.
The ordinance is already in effect, as it included an emergency clause allowing it to begin upon passage on Jan. 16.