- Six Successful protests led to the Board of Supervisors to reject the final fourteen proposed universal collection areas in Kern County.
- Unsure of what comes next, Kern County Public Works Director Joshua Champlin promises to work with the community when drafting a new plan.
- Champlin and CalRecycle have mentioned self-hauling as a potential way forward for compliance with SB 1383.
“We say enough is enough, we cannot afford to sit by and do nothing!”
This was one of dozens of residents who spoke to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, making the case that universal trash collection doesn’t make sense in rural Kern County. The meeting saw Public Works and the Board recognize six areas that successfully petitioned to block the fee attached to universal collection, which was close to 600 dollars annually for certain residents.
“I think when they see large numbers of people, they do take notice,” said Tammie Barbee, a Kernville resident who helped organize a grassroots effort to collect signatures for the Kern River Valley’s successful protest.
“They laid out what we could do for ourselves, how we gave ourselves a voice, and we came together and did that, according to their rules, the government rules, and we squashed it.”
The Board of Supervisors did not approve any of the fourteen proposed universal collection areas that day, including areas that did not stage successful 218 Protests.
The problem now is this leaves the county only 80 percent compliant with SB 1383, which they had planned to be compliant by March 1st. 2024. This opens the County up to be charged up to $10,000 per day by CalRecycle, something Public Works Director Joshua Champlin says may or may not happen
“Are they really inclined to finance or are they more of the attitude where they want to work with us in order to find a solution?” Champlin said.
Currently, Kern County Public Works does not have a plan to come into full compliance with SB 1383. Champlin says one can start to take form after they meet with CalRecycle, who is in charge of implementing SB 1383.
Scott Toland, who helped organize and collect signatures for the successful Kern River Valley protest, said he felt public works didn’t work with the community when they pitched universal collection areas, and hopes that changes moving forward.
“We have hope that they will include community leaders in the development of certain plans,” Toland said.
“We ask that we be kept in the loop this time if they have to move forward with compliance,” Barbee said.
Champlain says they will be.
“There could be a date and time where we come back with a new plan, but that plan is going to be vetted through the citizens, there is going to be a lot of community involvement,” Champlin said.
“I have faith and trust in the county that if they work with us, they can come up with a proposal that works,” Barbee said.
It’s unclear what that plan might be, but Champlin mentioned self hauling as a potential solution.
“Recently we’ve been really vetting out the process of self-hauling options with Cal-Recycle.”
In a statement to 23ABC, Maria West, Communications Director for Cal-Recycle, stated that for rural populations, the county can pass an ordinance that requires self-haulers to separate their recycling and organics in order to meet compliance.
Although questions remain, the successful protests illustrated what a community can achieve when they work as one.
“Many many many people donated a lot of money out of their picket to buy stamps and stuff envelopes and stood out in the cold and the wind and the rain to collect signatures,” Toland said.
“We are like anyplace out here, we have our debates, some are not nice, but when we all needed to come together, we came together,” Barbee said.
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