Whitman County Gazette - Serving Whitman County since 1877

PALOUSE- A grant was awarded to Whitman County, which helped Palouse receive a recycling bin, located at 490 West Main Street that will accept limited commodities.

The bin, which is located off to the side of the RV park, and what is the city's storage, will be removed if residents do not follow the guidelines of using the facility. The guidelines include that all materials must be empty, clean, and dry. All cardboard must be broken down.

For plastics, residents may bring in plastics number 1-7, and plastic bottles, jars, and tubs. Lids are not allowed. Metals include aluminum cans and foil, tin and metal scraps, aerosol cans that are empty with no lids or tips, and small sections of scrap metal.

Papers include newspaper, non-coated paper products, corrugated cardboard, magazines and catalogs, telephone books, print paper, junk mail, cereal and pop boxes, shoe boxes, and pizza boxes.

The City of Palouse stated that any items not listed will not be accepted.

Solid Waste and Recycling Director David Nails explained that the grant, Local Solid Waste Financial Assistance (LESWIFA), is received every two years. It is administered through the Department of Ecology.

Nails explained that it is the normal grant that they get from the state, "Depends on the governor's budget on how that is allocated to the 39 counties," he said.

The last grant was received 2021 through 2023, and the new grant will be 2023 through 2025, and starts July 1, of 2023. The grant will run through June 30, of 2025, Nails stated.

"We actually started the process on three new bins, over a year ago, and we just received them a couple weeks ago," he added.

In addition to the Palouse recycling center, Nails explained that Colton-Uniontown also received a new recycling bin.

"We have one more to go out," he said "We've approached Oakesdale, but we're not sure where it's going."

There are no drop off bins for commingled recycling in LaCrosse, Garfield, St. John, Endicott, Rosalia, Colton-Uniontown, and Palouse.

The LESWIFA grant also bought the truck, and funds help pay for the labor and fuel to go get the recycling boxes.

The grant comes through Models Toxic Control (MCTA), Nails explained, adding that they never know one biennium from the next how much the county will receive.

All the funds go into recycling, household hazardous waste, as well as free yard waste drop off. All which is free, and sustained partly by the grant.

Nails explained that a portion of costs also comes from the tipping fees that people make when they come to the facility.

"The grant doesn't pay for all of those programs, but it does help," he said.