OUR VIEW: County Council should consult residents

The Cache County Council passed a resolution last April implementing a recycling program that costs residents $3 a month for curbside recycling. For some, this is a welcome addition to the valley. Cheaper than private recycling companies and easier than dropping recyclables off at dumpsters in grocery store parking lots, some consider the new program a convenience.

For those who feel the $3 tax is an unwelcome infringement on their budgets, the fact that there were no public hearings for the program and very little announcement once the Council passed the resolution to implement it makes it difficult to accept the program. Logan Mayor Randy Simmons said he was not consulted about the program, and most other mayors in Cache County were also unaware of the resolution until it had been passed.

The program is hopefully going to extend the life of the local landfill. It will also help the environmentally-mindful sleep better at night, especially when they hear the garbage trucks rolling by in the early-morning hours. But there is opposition to the program in the valley, understandably so. Though the tax can be reduced to 85 cents per month if residents trade their 90-gallon trash can for a 60-gallon can, having any tax thrust on you without a chance to discuss the implications, benefits and downsides of the public program it is meant to support is justification for anger.

The issue is not whether recycling is good for the environment. Most people agree on that, though one point made in this ongoing argument is that recycling some materials releases toxins into the atmosphere, countering any good effects of the recycled material. The big issue is good politics.

The County Council had been discussing a possible recycling program for years, according to Logan Councilwoman Tami Pyfer, as quoted in Wednesday’s article by Di Lewis. It’s also part of Logan’s master plan, a projection for a city’s progress. Yet the resolution was proposed and passed within about two weeks, with little fanfare and less public discussion.

Hopefully this is not a model for all future policy-making in Cache Valley. Thankfully we are in a place where leaders are held accountable for their actions. Hopefully the Council will learn from the public reaction in this case and hold public hearings before making decisions.