Community poll can help pay for spring and fall cleanups

Taking a brief survey can help pay for 2022’s Coulee area spring cleanup, fall cleanup, and another spring cleanup in 2023. 

During the cleanups, residents of Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam, and Elmer City are allowed to dump yard waste for free at the Delano Regional Transfer Station, and cities sometimes pick up yard waste for you from your street.

Electric City Mayor Diane Kohout, on behalf of the Regional Board of Mayors, is applying for a roughly $30,000 air quality grant with the state Department of Ecology to pay for costs associated with the cleanups, such as dump fees and advertising costs. 

If people dump their yard waste, they won’t burn it, which helps air quality, Kohout explained as to why an air quality grant would pay for the cleanups.

The grant applies toward the biennium that started on July 1 of this year, and ends June 30 of 2023, but the grant process only began recently, with applications due by Nov. 1.

Kohout said that Electric City has received calls almost daily from people disappointed that there isn’t a fall cleanup this year. That contrasts with the positive feedback received for holding two spring cleanups this year in which people brought in many tons of yard waste, although a specific figure was unavailable prior to deadline.

Kohout asked the other mayors to write letters for the application addressing how their communities feel about the cleanups.

Data that shows community support for the spring cleanup will also help the RBOM get the grant, Kohout said, so The Star is conducting a survey to help gather information for application process.

The survey can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WFRPK7H and will be available in the online version of this article at grandcoulee.com and shared on social media.