Palouse eliminates wood chipper program

The Palouse city council voted to eliminate the city’s chipper program in a meeting Nov. 22.

In an effort to cut costs, the board debated whether to raise permit fees or eliminate the program all together. Stopping the program is projected to save the city $4,500 to $5,800. The council considered raising the permit fee from $25 to $40, which still wouldn’t allow the city to break even, while members were concerned that that increased fee might not bring as many users.

The council will revisit the program when there is money in the budget.

Palouse will still allow compost dumping with an annual permit fee of $15.