Public comment period open for county solid waste plan update

SEVILLE — Medina County residents can now comment on the Medina County Solid Waste District's solid waste management plan update. Solid Waste District Director Barbara Walton said the plan is rewritten every five years and projects out 15 years. It includes goals, such as providing residents access to recycling and a percentage goal for what is recycled compared to the waste that goes to the landfill. The solid waste plan also has sections about the programs the district provides, such as: Accepting hard-to-recycle materials like electronics, appliances with Freon, scrap tires and household hazardous waste. A specialty waste facility is open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. A drop-off recycling program in which there are 57 drop-off locations throughout the county for residents to recycle. Promoting waste reduction and recycling through education. In July, the Solid Waste Policy Committee voted to submit the version of the plan that does not waive Brunswick from flow control for public comment. The flow control requirement in the county's solid waste plan requires all waste from within the county to go to the processing facility in Seville. The draft plan update can be viewed at recyclemedinacounty.com and medinaco.org. The written comment period will run until Sept. 30, and written comments can be sent to Medina County Solid Waste Management District, PO Box 44, Chippewa Lake, OH 44215 or to rbeck@medinacounty.gov. A public hearing will also be held regarding the draft plan update at 5 p.m. on Oct. 7 in the commissioners' hearing room in the county administration building at 144 N. Broadway St. in Medina. The policy committee will review comments and make any changes they deem necessary. Walton said. Then, the plan will go out for ratification to the county commissioners, townships and municipalities. "The 90-day ratification process is where they actually get to approve or disapprove the plan in 90 days," she said. "We have to have at least a 75 percent ratification of the population in Medina County that approves the plan. Once that happens, then it goes to the Ohio EPA for their approval." Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.