SWACO makes changes to help protect landfill

Cleveland-based landscaping firm Kurtz Bros., Inc., says it is expert in demolition recycling and construction waste disposal. Thankfully, how it disposes of such waste in Franklin County is finally coming under increased scrutiny.

The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio reports it is keeping a closer eye on Kurtz dump trucks now to make sure any demolition or construction waste they’re hauling doesn’t end up in SWACO’s landfill unless proper dumping fees are paid.

Last year The Dispatch reported Kurtz disposed of 16,000 tons of debris that could have netted nearly $700,000 in landfill fees but for a longstanding contract in which SWACO pays the company to separate foreign material from yard waste.

Kurtz’s explanation then was the 800 truckloads of debris had been culled from yard waste, qualifying it for free dumping, but the debris accumulated over time at a Groveport mulch facility Kurtz had sold.

SWACO and Kurtz had different interpretations of whether the contract, enacted prior to the current administration, allowed Kurtz a free pass to dispose of the contraband material such as dirt, rocks and plastic bags.

The good news is SWACO now reports it has instituted new procedures to crack down on any waste that comes in from any haulers — not just Kurtz — that doesn’t meet specifications. The new procedures include random inspections and also empower SWACO workers to question a truck’s contents before dumping is allowed. Two Kurtz trucks full of waste not allowed to be dumped for free were turned away from the landfill in February after being challenged.

SWACO Executive Director Ty Marsh has said one of his agency’s priorities for 2018 is a focus on increased waste reduction and diversion. Making sure that all dumpers pay their freight or go elsewhere is critical to that goal.

If we needed any more evidence of today’s students being woke to the world around them, it is on full display at Ohio State University.

This time it’s not gun violence or sexual predators getting students engaged, although such matters could be tangential to the issue that has called hundreds to action. Their cause is growing concern about unaddressed mental health problems of their peers and what may be an uptick in suicides.

They would not be so engaged if they believed the university were doing all it could to address the problem; they believe it is not, citing waits for some counseling appointments.

Organized as Buckeyes for Mental Health, one new group of about 300 has taken it on itself to print and distribute posters at campus parking garages citing national and local suicide prevention resources. Messages of caring and hope are being spread by Never Walk Alone, another new student group formed by an attempted suicide survivor.

Sadly, two students in the past year died in jumps or falls from the top deck of one garage, and a former student was recently hospitalized.

Students’ demands for more mental health resources to be expended have resulted in OSU reviewing garage safety and creating a task force to identify behavioral health best practices it might add to current offerings. Additional campus resources have also been publicized.

If nothing else, the students’ efforts send a message of caring, and that might help some hold on until more help arrives.