Pitkin County honored for recycling-diversion program
The Recycle Colorado Association awarded Pitkin County with the Outstanding Government Recycling/Diversion Program award at the association’s annual conference held Wednesday.
Pitkin County was nominated by Eco Cycle in Boulder. A committee of Recycle Colorado members then reviewed the nominations and selected Pitkin County as the top candidate, according to a news release.
“We are super proud of what we have been able to accomplish,” said Cathy Hall, the county’s solid waste director. “To be recognized by the leading association on recycling in Colorado is a big deal.”
With a diversion rate of 38% in 2019 (the most recent year for which data is available), Pitkin County has the highest diversion rate of any Colorado county, the release says. Waste diversion is material that is recycled or finds a reuse before it goes into the trash.
This leading diversion rate is due in large part to the county’s efforts to limit organic materials from being buried in the landfill. The Pitkin County Solid Waste Center is host to the second-largest composting facility in the state, which diverts 13,000 tons of organics from the landfill annually. Pitkin County also is one of only six counties in Colorado that tracks annual waste diversion.
In addition to its successful organics diversion program, the county passed an ordinance in 2020 to increase the recycling of materials such as scrap metal, concrete and cardboard from construction and demolition projects.
Though the landfill does not have a formal C&D processing facility, the new ordinance creates a tiered pricing structure and a waste deposit system that is leading to higher rates of recycling. This new system drives people to use existing diversion programs at the landfill and separate their materials, the release states.
Not all materials can be recycled on site and being located on the Western Slope presents significant challenges for getting materials to recycling centers, the release says. “Many of the recycled items such as mattresses, paints, books, batteries, single stream recycling and textiles have to go to the Front Range for processing, an average 190-mile trip. Reducing use of and reusing these materials where possible is one way to cut down on their impact,” the release adds.
Said Hall: “With a rapidly filling landfill, diversion is our number one goal here at the County’s Solid Waste Center. A diversion rate of 38% is a good start, but there is more to be done. We will continue to look for more and more diversion opportunities.”
For more information, visit LandfillRules.com or call 970-429-2880.
Glenwood Springs finance director earns financial reporting award
The city of Glenwood Springs has been awarded with the Government Finance Officers Association’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its annual financial report for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2019.
According to a news release from the city, the Certificate of Achievement is “the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.”
The report was judged by an impartial panel, which is composed of individuals with expertise in public sector financial reporting to meet the high standards of the program, which includes demonstrating a constructive “spirit of full disclosure” to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the report, the release states.
When a Certificate of Achievement is awarded to a government, an Award of Financial Reporting Achievement is also presented to the individual(s) or department designated by the government as primarily responsible for its having earned it. This was presented to Yvette Gustad, the city’s finance director.
Said Glenwood Springs Chief Operating Officer Steve Boyd: “Yvette’s dedication to excellence in internal controls and financial reporting is extraordinary and an asset to the city of Glenwood Springs. I cannot thank her enough for her outstanding work.”
The association is a major professional association servicing the needs of more than 21,000 members, including appointed and elected local, state and provincial-level government officials and other finance practitioners. It is headquartered in Chicago.
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June 19, 2021 at 04:00PM
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