Meeting with purpose

Published 11:31 am Wednesday, September 5, 2018

The Lunenburg County Administration Office and Board of Supervisors oversee and handle an enormous amount of issues within the county. One aspect I was not aware of until recently was that the county had a Landfill Committee and Citizen Advisory Board.

They met recently, Aug. 28 to discuss one of the landfill cells closing and the process that goes into that operation.

The landfill has been a topic of discussion and concern in the past year due to high volumes of mud and trash that has covered Oral Oaks Road, the road in front of the landfill, when rain or snow hits.

Container First Services (CFS) has experienced employee turnover as well with the departure of Collin Moore and hiring Kurt Wood as landfill supervisor.

CFS also makes an impact in the community through generous donations to area organizations, most recently donating the funds for a new vehicle that will help Lunenburg Health Services nurses drive to patients.

Considering the impact that CFS and the landfill have in the community, it’s encouraging to see the county monitor its activities and take steps to notify the public.

The Board of Supervisor’s Landfill Committee consists of Gee, Hound’s Creek Supervisor Alvester Edmonds, Chairman and Rehoboth Supervisor Randy Slayton. The Citizen Advisory Board includes Edmonds and Ronnie Williams as the citizen representative.

Landfills generate a lot of discussion and concern solely for the fact that there can be a lot of risk involved with an industry that handles household waste and other products. Working for Farmville Newsmedia, LLC, the proposed landfill in nearby Cumberland County has generated a lot of similar questions and concerns about its operations and how it will handle waste safely.

While the committee and board certainly lay the groundwork for discussion and fulfill the county and landfill’s host agreement, perhaps more could be done to encourage even more participation from the community.

Gee recommended those with concerns or comments to contact Carl Ashworth, the landfill liaison for the county. He can be reached at the County Administration office at (434) 696-2142 or the landfill site at (434) 696-2559.

Any county action on this issue is encouraging. We have the power to spread the word further, and make change where it’s needed.

Emily Hollingsworth is a staff reporter for The K-V Dispatch. Her email address is Emily.Hollingsworth@KVDispatch. com.