All trash sites re-opened

Dumpsters were returned to the Bear Creek sanitation site Friday, officially signaling that all eight of the county’s trash centers were back open for business.

However, the same issues that played a large role in the board of commissioners’ decision to close five of the locations Jan. 1 are already occurring again.

Graham County Sanitation Director Gavin Colvard first pitched commissioners on an idea to condense the number of sites available countywide from eight to three during the board’s September meeting. Reasons cited ranged from cost savings to an overall disregard for the sites.

With each of the locations open 24 hours a day and unmanned, the sanitation department spends the majority of Mondays cleaning up more than household garbage, which is the only permissible trash to be disposed of at the sites. Instead, varying items such as lawnmowers, appliances, bed frames and tires were being left at each location – all items that are supposed to be taken to the sanitation department’s central office on Snowbird Road and paid for based on weight.

Colvard’s proposal was to only keep the Snowbird Road, Stecoah and East Buffalo sites open. Gates and new fencing were to be installed, as well as guard shacks for employees who were supposed to man the sites.

The decision to close the sites was approved and efforts were made to forewarn residents of the pending closures, such as three full-page color ads in December editions of The Graham Star. But it was abundantly clear that word did not spread as well as hoped, as the Jan. 1 removals and closures of Bear Creek, Brooks Cove, Gladdens Cove, Meadow Branch and Snowbird’s green-can sites resulted in widespread backlash.

Around 40 residents attended the Jan. 23 commissioners meeting to express their displeasure. After hearing their input, a 4-1 decision was made to re-open the sites immediately. The process included having to re-negotiate leases formerly in place with the U.S. Forest Service for sites on its land.

Decisions on what to do next have not been made and will not be until the public offers its suggestions. County clerk Kim Crisp told the Star on Friday that public hearings could be held in the vicinity of each location.

It’s evident that the same violators from before the closures did not take heed. Photos shared with the Star on Feb. 5 from the Snowbird site show garbage lying on the ground – well in front of the dumpsters – lumber debris and a bi-fold door. One container had also purportedly been filled with tires.

Residents pitched the installation of security cameras at the Jan. 23 meeting to help cut back on vandalism and cite those who are leaving the sites in disarray. In the past, Duke Energy has declined to replace street lights at the sites due to repeated offenses of the lights being shot out.

The Bear Creek location in the southwestern corner of the county was the last to re-open due to a need to install a new fence around the perimeter. The one in place has both been vandalized and took a major hit when a tree fell on it several years ago. When Asheville Fencing does the install – which will cost roughly $11,000 – the dumpsters will have to be temporarily removed again.