Kermit invites residents to pick up trash
CITIZEN STAFF REPORT
Mingo County residents will have several ways to help clean up their communities April 18 as a countywide litter pickup and beautification effort coincides with free disposal events for waste tires and unwanted electronics in Williamson.
The April 18 cleanup will involve the Mingo County Commission, local municipalities and community groups, with volunteers expected to work throughout the day on trash pickup and beautification projects across the county.
In Kermit, Mayor Charles Sparks said the town will participate in the countywide cleanup and encouraged residents to come out and help.
“We will plan on going from the bridge at Grey Eagle, all the way to the bottom of the second Burning Creek, on both sides of town,” Sparks said. “If residents want to come out and help us, we will have the supplies. We will have the pickers, bags and vests. Anybody who wants to come out and help can.”
Mingo County Commission President Nathan Brown also encouraged residents across the county to join cleanup efforts.
“We are excited to work with the municipalities and community groups to do this countywide cleanup,” Brown said. “We can accomplish so much when we work together as a team to make our county the best it can be. We invite everyone who is interested to come out and join us on Saturday.”
A waste tire drop-off for West Virginia residents will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Williamson water plant parking lot, 317 East Third Avenue in Williamson.
The collection is limited to 10 tires per person and is restricted to passenger vehicle and light truck tires. Tires from businesses will not be accepted.
The tire collection is a collaborative effort involving Friends of the Tug Fork River, the City of Williamson, the West Virginia REAP Program, Veolia Water and the Mingo County Solid Waste Authority.
Also from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Mingo County Commission will sponsor its covered electronic devices collection event at the Mingo County Courthouse, 78 East Second Avenue in Williamson.
The event is open only to Mingo County residents, who must present identification showing county residency.
There is no charge to participate, but all items must be brought to the courthouse. Pickup will not be available.
Residents may bring a wide range of electronic items for disposal, including desktop and laptop computers, cell phones, cables and wires, keyboards, printers, fax machines, copy machines, servers, network equipment, rechargeable batteries that are not leaking, video cameras, video game consoles, telephones, microwave ovens with food waste removed and televisions. Televisions will be accepted, but the limit is two per vehicle.
The event will not accept mercury-containing items such as thermostats and level switches, paint, ballasts containing PCBs, light bulbs, food waste, toxic waste, liquids or refrigerators.
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s REAP CED Recycling Grant Program is funding the electronics recycling drive. This marks the third consecutive year the Mingo County Commission has partnered with the WVDEP to offer the event.
For more information about the electronics recycling event, residents may contact Mingo County Commission Grants Coordinator and Project Manager Leigh Ann Ray at 304-235-0338.
Cleanup supplies are available at the Mingo County Commission office at the Courthouse, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.