UNION COUNTY — A reduction in the number of hours 10 of the county’s 11 recycling convenience centers are open and the closing of the other one is projected to save Union County $145,000 a year while maintaining the program.
Supervisor Tommy Sinclair announced Wednesday that, beginning July 1, the county’s recycling convenience centers will be open the following days:
• Bonham (S.C. 18) — Monday, Friday, and Saturday
• Monarch (Old Landfill) — Monday, Friday, and Saturday
• Carlisle — Tuesday and Saturday
• Santuc — Thursday and Saturday
• Lockhart — Thursday and Saturday
• Jonesville — Monday, Friday, and Saturday
• Kelton — Tuesday and Saturday
• John Hart Road — Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday
• Southside (Airport Road) — Monday, Friday, and Saturday
• Cross Keys — Thursday and Saturday
The centers will operate from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. each day they are open or 18 hours a week for those open two days a week and 27 hours for those open three days.
Currently, many of the county’s recycling convenience centers are open on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday and on Sunday afternoon while others operate on different schedules. Some of the centers are open more than 60 hours a week. All recycling convenience centers are closed on Wednesday.
Sinclair said the new schedule is part of the county’s efforts to reduce costs while maintaining services.
“This was done for budget reductions,” Sinclair said. “It will save the county $145,000 a year.”
Sinclair said the schedule was developed based on the results of a study that analyzed how much recyclables and other garbage the centers collected each week.
“A collection study was done that showed that Kelton, for example, was open 50 hours a week and was taking in 296 tons,” Sinclair said. “The same study showed that the Bonham center was open 64 hours a week and collecting 760 tons. It was collecting more than twice as much as Kelton but was not operating twice as many hours. Also, just eight miles way from Kelly-Kelton the Jonesville center was collecting 730 tons. Those kinds of patterns developed all over the county.”
Sinclair said the patterns of collection at the recycling convenience centers lead the county to explore its options for reducing costs while still maintaining services. He said the option the county chose will ensure that county residents will continue to be able to dispose of their recyclables and household garbage most days of the week.
“Except Wednesday and Sunday, somewhere in the county multiple centers will be open,” Sinclair said. “Every center is open at least two days a week.”
Sinclair said that, given the results of the collection study, he doesn’t feel the new schedule will have a negative impact on public use of the convenience centers. He pointed out that, on average, most residents went to the centers only a couple of times a week and the new schedule should be able to continue to accommodate their needs.
While 10 of the county’s recycling convenience centers will operate under the new schedule, the center on South Pinckney Street next to the Union County Communications Department will be closed. Sinclair said the facility is being closed due to a lack of use.
“It was in the city limits and collected so little we didn’t measure it,” Sinclair said, adding that the space will probably be used for parking for the communications department.
A total of 35 people are employed at the recycling convenience centers, but Sinclair said he doesn’t anticipate any of them losing their jobs. He said they will instead be worked into the new schedule.
Editor Charles Warner can be reached at 864-427-1234, ext. 14, or by email at cwarner@civitasmedia.com.
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