Amador County – Amador County announced the suspension of the Green Waste Voucher Recycling Program, starting at the first of the new year, due to a lack of funding.

Amador Air District Officer Mike Boitano said Monday that the voucher program has been popular, but people must know that when they drop off their green yard waste after Jan. 1, 2012, it will no longer be free to do so with a voucher, and there will be a charge to drop their green waste at the facilities.

Boitano said the voucher program and the free drop-offs were ending due to a lack of funding as of Jan. 1, 2012. He said that could change depending on the county budget in July.

Amador County Waste Management Director Jim McHargue in a release Monday said “during the last year a Green Waste Voucher Recycling Program was created through a unique partnership between the Amador County Air District and the Amador County Waste Management Department.” He said “nearly 7,000 cubic yards of lawn clippings, leaves, branches, and tree limbs from county residents have been collected and recycled.”

He said the “program enabled Amador County residents to bring in their residentially generated green waste for free recycling when a voucher was presented,” but due to budgetary constraints the voucher program will stop effective January 1, 2012. He said the successful Green Waste Recycling Program has operated with the support of ACES Waste Services in Pine Grove and Vicini Brothers Green Waste Recycling Facility on Willow Creek Road.

McHargue said “the program significantly reduced burning in the County and helped keep hundreds of truckloads of green waste out of the landfill.”

He said the “County wishes to thank those who participated in the program and promises to resume the program when resources become available to provide ongoing funding.”

For more information, call the Amador County Waste Management Department at (209) 223-6429.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.