Saturday is Community Clean-Up and Arbor Day celebration

APRIL 22, 2010

READY FOR CLEAN-UP—Maurice Paré, Heather Burnham, Ryan Smathers, Julie Castle, Mike Dugger, and Jeff Jones (l to r) are ready for Orofino’s Community Clean-up Day this Saturday, April 24.

The Chamber of Commerce, City of Orofino, Kiwanis and Rotary clubs are organizing a community spring clean up effort again this year. Scheduled activities at the City Park on Saturday, April 24 are as follows:

For Community Clean-up, free trash bags are available from 7 a.m. to 12 noon. Trash trucks will be on hand all weekend to accept trash deposits. A free hot dog lunch from 11:30 a.m. to noon for those signed up for area clean-up will be held.

Clearwater-Potlatch Timber Protection Association (C-PTPA) will have information on fire protection.

At 12 noon the Tree City USA and Growth Award will be presented to the city.

The Transfer Station is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. all weekend. It will take small truck and passenger tires, deposits of household pesticides, and recyclables such as cardboard, newspaper, paper, plastic containers, aluminum cans, scrap iron, batteries (car and rechargeable), and used cranked oil.

Clearwater Mart will take any reusable items.

To sign up or for more information or for assistance in cleaning up, call Moe Paré at 476-3726.

Arbor Day

In celebration of Arbor Day, Urban Forestry of Orofino (UFO), in conjunction with the Idaho Dept. of Lands, will be giving out free seedlings and raffle ornamental shrubs and trees. Information on planting and tree care will be available. For more information call the Chamber of Commerce at 476-4335.

Garage sale

The community garage sale will be back this year in the fair exhibit building. This is a good opportunity to clean up and recycle your household goods, and make money. Money made from the booth fees will be given back to a community organization to help with one of their projects. Four sizes of spaces are available. Contact Don George at 476-4226 for more information and reservations.

Greener Clearwater County

Greener Clearwater County will have a booth Saturday and be available to educate and answer questions regarding the 3 R’s (reduce, reuse, and recycle). They will also have a contest for the most recyclables, with prizes for the winners.

For more information contact Amanda Tucker at 476-5658.

Transfer Station

The Transfer Station will be accepting almost everything on this day. This year the only thing that will not be accepted is whole vehicle bodies. All waste has to be known, so if there is a liquid you think is old motor oil, label it as unknown. It must be in a durable sealed container.

Items taken during working hours

Tires larger than a passenger vehicle tire must be off the rim and quartered.

Batteries that operate gas or diesel engines.

Water based paint; just make it solid by mixing it with kitty litter or sawdust.

Metal, excluding whole vehicle bodies.

Used motor oil from personal vehicles. A list of names is available that will receive oil from commercial vehicles.

As many residents know, the transfer station is a limited recycling facility. Cardboard should be broken down and separated before it arrives at the station. Please do not throw it into the trailer. The station also recycles plastic bottles, newspapers, magazines, aluminum cans and tin cans.

Coordinating the recyclables has proven to be a very viable waste management plan. It is taken very seriously, and it is hoped that more residents begin to embrace it as a part of their own waste management plan.

Load records are available for public viewing and a copy will be made if needed. A presentation will be given about recycling if people are interested.

Please take the extra time to separate your waste; it really does make a difference. About seven and a half percent of the community actively recycled in 2009; this resulted in 500 tons of waste that did not have to be shipped, which costs money. The recycling is paying for itself and then some.

On clean-up day the transfer station will also begin issuing resident cards. If you don’t know someone at the station bring in a current utility bill, such as your phone, heat or power bill, and your driver’s license.

For more information call the transfer station at 476-7903. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. The transfer station is closed to the public on Mondays.