SIMI VALLEY : Hazardous Waste Roundup Approved
In a cost-cutting move, the Simi Valley City Council voted Monday to join Thousand Oaks and Ventura County in financing a series of hazardous waste collection events for east county residents.
Simi Valley’s last hazardous waste roundup in May, 1990, arranged solely by the city, served 1,475 households and cost $214,545. By entering into a joint collection agreement with Thousand Oaks and the county, Simi Valley will be able to cut this expense to about $85,000 per roundup.
“We’re looking at providing the same level of service to the same number of residents for about half the cost of the last event,” said Pat Pieres, a Simi Valley waste program analyst.
The savings were obtained by reaching an agreement with Chemical Waste Management, based in Fremont, to conduct two-day spring and fall hazardous waste roundups in Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks. Residents of the two cities and unincorporated east county communities will be urged to bring their materials to these events.
The agreement has been approved by the Thousand Oaks City Council and is scheduled to be considered today by the Board of Supervisors.
Hazardous wastes include paint, motor oil, pesticides, pool chemicals and other products that cannot legally be washed down the drain or dumped in most landfills. Collection events are expensive because hazardous waste handlers must follow complex regulations in packaging and disposing of the materials.
Cities pay for hazardous waste collection days to prevent pollution by residents who improperly dispose of such products, Pieres said.
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