County chipper service nears end of DOE funds

Hauling yard waste to a town site to be fed into a county chipper could have a fee involved next year as the county approaches the end of a state Department of Ecology funding program. The state funds derived from an air quality program which encourages residents to convert yard waste into chips rather than lighting up the traditional bonfires.

To continue operating their chipper, the county will ask for a six-month extension on the Department of Ecology grant that has funded the chipper for the past year and a half.

The present grant expires at the end of the year, and an extension would continue the funding through June, 2010.

Public Works Director Mark Storey said towns may be asked to help pay the salaries of operators and cost of fuel in the event the state chipper grant funds cease.

“Some of them have said they will pay for labor charges. Right now we’re exploring ways to keep the program alive with some of permeation of that,” Storey said.

The air quality department of the DOE gave the county a $130,000 grant starting in Dec. 2007, but the money wasn’t available to be used for another six months while the DOE finished processing the paperwork.

Through the grant, the county now officially owns the chipper, Storey said.

The county would possibly pay for part of that program from waste fees, Storey said.

Today when a town rents the chipper, one county maintenance official arrives with it and the city is expected to have one of their own city maintenance men help.

Together, sometimes with one or two more extra people, the crew breaks down any yard waste town residents brought to their designated site. The crews mainly process tree limbs and brush.

At the end of the day, the host town is required to re-fuel the chipper with diesel.

Palouse Mayor Michael Echanove said his city has gotten some good use out of the chipper and is very interested in continuing to use it in the future.

“Not only are you chipping yard waste for re-use, but you’re cutting down on calls

…” said Echanove. “It’s win-win-win for everyone.”