“Island County Waste Division factsIn 2000, Island County generated an estimated 128 tons of waste daily, including about 97 tons of disposed waste and 31 tons of recyclables. – From 1995-’98, the waste disposed of at county facilities increased from 24,200 to 31,600 tons per year, a yearly increase of about 4 percent.- About 2.6 pounds of disposed waste is generated per person each day.- In 1998, Island County recycled nearly 6,000 tons of materials, including paper, glass, plastics, iron metals, aluminum and yard waste.- Island County hauling fees costs $88 per ton of solid waste and $60 per ton of yard waste.The story of Island County’s waste has two chapters.The first one began with the founding of the area’s first settlements and ended in the late 1980s, says county solid waste division manager David Bonvouloir. It was then that county officials, working under newly mandated environmental guidelines, realized they needed to improve the region’s disposal methods.The second chapter, which is ongoing, began in 1992 with the closure of the Coupeville Sanitary Landfill.Last year, Island County generated an estimated 128 tons of waste daily, including about 97 tons of disposed waste and 31 tons of recyclables. From 1995-’98, the waste disposed of at county facilities increased from 24,200 to 31,600 tons per year, an annual increase of about 4 percent.Also, it’s estimated about 2.6 pounds of disposed waste is generated per person each day.The Coupeville landfill, about 2 miles south of Coupeville’s Main Street intersection on State Route 20, served much of Whidbey Island. It held about 30 years of refuse when county workers sealed it with a thick plastic lid and covered it with dirt. When it was closed, the fill held an estimated 350,000 tons of refuse.However, before the landfill opened, said Bonvouloir, there were a handful of smaller independent sites where residents dumped their waste, which was usually burned. Often residents burned their refuse themselves.The Coupeville fill represented one of the county’s first efforts to regionally manage waste collection. Indeed, even though a few other fills continued to operate through the years, the Coupeville site handled the brunt of waste disposal.In the mid-1980s, as awareness of environmental issues came to the fore, county planners saw it necessary to develop a comprehensive waste management system for the regions, which was quickly running out of refuse storage space. County officials decided that the most practical and economical way for them to store their waste was not to store it at all. As a result, since the regional landfill’s closure the county has been shipping more than 25 tons of refuse daily to the Columbia Ridge Regional Landfill in Arlington, Ore.The county contracts long-haul trucks to ship the loads of compacted waste to refuse trains in Seattle, which in turn take the waste to the landfill. Bonvouloir says it will cost the county $45 million for the 21-year shipping contract with Waste Management Inc., one of the largest waste management companies in the world.Bonvouloir, who has directed the solid waste program 11 years, said county solid waste is picked up by one of three contracted hauling companies, including the city of Oak Harbor, Island Disposal Inc. and Stanwood Camano Disposal Inc.The county solid waste division employs about 25 office and field workers.There are also three disposal sites in Oak Harbor, Coupeville and Bayview where residents can dispose of waste themselves. Bonvouloir says many throughout the county continue to self-haul.In 1998, Island County recycled about nearly 6,000 tons of materials, including paper, glass, plastics, iron metals, aluminum and yard waste.Recyclable items are either picked-up through curbside delivery or deposited by consumers at one of six recycling service centers on Whidbey and one on Camano, staffed by both private contract companies or county solid waste staff. Bonvouloir admitted the county usually loses money finding a company that accepts the recycled materials. Most plastics and colored types of glass are virtually worthless, he said.Nonetheless, in 1998, the county collected 960 tons of glass and 15 tons of plastics.Steel is also another recyclable commodity that’s worthless in the trading market.The county also works to reduce regional waste through a backyard composting program and community-wide education efforts aimed at encouraging recycling. Bonvouloir calls this smart living – staying away from conspicuous consumption.In fact, Bonvouloir said, there are signs Island County residents are open to the challenge of limiting their consumption. In the mid-’90s, he said, the region’s per capita rate of daily waste production was 3.8 pounds – lower than the state’s overall rate of 5.2 pounds.Generally, Bonvouloir said, Island County residents have proven very responsive to concerns surrounding the environmental impact of waste disposal. As a result, the changes he’s seen during his time with the county have been substantial.It’s a really challenging job, he said. But, you can see the work being done.It’s not just on paper.Next Wednesday: A look at the Island County prosecutor’s office and its legal functions. “