Time to trash the orange bags
To the editor:
I heard a nice rumor on the street the other day which could affect most of us disgruntled “pay-as-you-throw” Presque Isle-ites in a most favorable way. Heard that the city is contemplating getting out of the trash-collection business and perhaps contracting with Tri-Community Landfill in Fort Fairfield to do the job.
Now that appears to be a sound economic move because as it stands, this city is losing lots of money with its present trash-collecting and disposal scheme. By contrast, the Tri-Community Landfill makes money and, as I understand it, those residents of Caribou, Fort and Limestone are perfectly happy with their collection program. Most Presque Isle residents are not happy, either with the expense or the complexities of the present program.
Trash collection in Caribou is easy and fairly cheap. Residents pay $16 a month for a once-a-week pickup … no stupid orange bags required. Large items like appliances and, actually, any kind of trash can be taken by residents to the landfill for a yearly fee of $10. A $5 fee for each appliance is charged. Not only that, but the road leading to the Tri-Community Landfill is smooth as opposed to Presque Isle’s awful, full-of-potholes road to our landfill.
To top it all off, according to Fort Fairfield’s former town manager, Dan Foster, in a March issue of the Fort Fairfield Journal, Tri-Community Landfill makes a profit. On the other hand, Presque Isle, with its poorly-conceived trash-disposal scheme, loses money.
So let’s hope that the city fathers have enough sense to do the right thing and re-evaluate the present trash-collection design and join the Tri-Community Landfill organization. That would make the vast majority of us very happy.
Dick Graves
Presque Isle
