“Can’t you smell that smell? The smell of trash surrounds you … ” (apologies to Lynyrd Skynyrd). Councilmen Patrick McMath and Mark Verret joined Mayor Mark and CAO Gina Hayes on a visit to Coastal Environmental Services, the trash processor for Covington, Mandeville and Slidell. As I mentioned previously, due to national and local trends, recycling as we know it has changed significantly in the last 6 months. There is now only one recycling facility in the state of La (Baton Rouge) and it does not accept glass – – neither does the facility in Sumrall, MS that takes our recyclables. I also confirmed that crushed glass (i.e. sand) is not a detriment to landfills. I was disappointed to learn that, since we have not allowed a landfill to be constructed in St. Tammany Parish, most of our garbage is trucked (13-14 tons / truck, 60 mile trip) to Waggaman – both dangerous and inefficient. Covington residents: Put your recycle receptacle out for Thursday – no glass, no plastic bags.
