Photo by BOBBY ARDOIN
BOBBY ARDOIN
Contributing Writer
By the end of 2022, St. Landry Parish households will have a new residential garbage collection provider, while in May the Solid Waste Commission will again host the annual Hazardous Waste Collection event, according to SWC executive director Richard LeBouef.
LeBouef spoke about both events Wednesday night just before the conclusion of a Parish Council Finance Committee meeting.
The current residential garbage pickup contract with Waste Connections is scheduled to expire in September and the SWC has already selected a replacement provider, LeBouef said.
LeBouef said he is optimistic the company whose name he did not reveal will provide more efficiency for the garbage collection process that effects about 33,000 households parish wide.
The 14 new trucks will continue the fuel source process of using natural methane gas produced from garbage at the landfill. The new trucks are smaller than the current ones used by Waste Connections, said LeBouef.
However LeBouef expects that the new company will be more responsive to solving issues caused by garbage spill and missed connections.
“All of the trucks will be equipped with GPS tracking and we will also have video footage. Right now is there is a problem with pickups, or there is a miss in a collection, we have no way to prove it. All we can do now is scream and holler and hope,” said LeBouef.
The biggest change for the residential collection process will be cutting back corporate limit pickups to one day instead of two, LeBouef added.
Currently municipality garbage collection is performed twice weekly. Under the new contract garbage will be picked up once a week inside towns and cities.
The once-a-week collections for rural areas will remain the same, LeBouef pointed out.
Household Hazardous Waste Day
The SWC has set May 21 for collecting household hazardous waste products at the recycling centers in Opelousas and Eunice, said LeBouef.
Parish residents will have the chance to dispose of household items which are described as unsuited for placement in the solid waste landfill located in Beggs.
Among the items available to be dropped off at either recycling center include paint, motor oil, household chemicals, batteries, electronic waste, pesticides fluorescent lighting, bulbs and tires.
Tire collection will be limited to five per person, according to information contained on the SWC webpage.
The event in Opelousas begins at 8 a.m. and concludes at noon. In Eunice the hazardous disposal collection starts at 8:30 a.m. and also ends at 12 p.m.
More information can be obtained by calling the SWC (337-826-5211).
