Raiders start recycling

A Lake Roosevelt teacher’s recycling proposal won approval from the school board last week, a move he hopes will reduce the district’s waste footprint and perhaps even its garbage bill. 

The unanimous decision at the board’s Sept. 9 meeting means the district will begin collecting mixed paper and cardboard in a separate recycling bin provided by Sunrise Disposal.

“[Sunrise] expects we may be able to eliminate a dumpster within 2 months of getting our program up and running,” wrote Aaron Derr, a 6th grade teacher at Lake Roosevelt Elementary. 

Pickup will cost $65 for every other week service, or $55 for weekly pickups, and there is no contract involved, Derr wrote. 

The change comes amidst discussions at the Regional Board of Mayors about exploring offering curbside recycling for residential customers in the four local towns, as well as year-round organics (yard waste) collection.

Electric City Mayor Diane Kohout, who sits on the Grant County Solid Waste Advisory Committee, has alluded to mandatory curbside recycling and organics collection coming from the state Department of Ecology in the next few years.