With officials from the West Kentucky Correctional Complex immediately canceling its recycling agreement with Trigg, Caldwell, Crittenden, Lyon and Livingston County, local leaders will be spending the next two weeks — or longer — finding solutions about what to do next.
Trigg County Judge-Executive Stan Humphries said the announcement came through a Zoom conference call Tuesday afternoon, but there had been some short forewarning about the possibility.
At present time, Humphries said Trigg Countians can continue their recycling efforts, and that in the immediacy, the reusable refuse will be taken to other facilities.
However, Humphries is asking for local citizens to adopt one key change in their measures going forward.
Humphries said that each county is trying to scramble for “the best path forward,” and a meeting of the five-county corporation is coming at a later date. He urged that it’s too early to tell what the best solution could be, but that several options are on the table — including each municipality going its own way, or multiple municipalities joining together for some common solutions.
Whatever the future of recycling holds, Humphries added that WKCC officials gave three distinct reasons as to why operations had to cease: finances, employee numbers and overall safety.
Humphries also said that Trigg Countians have done a terrific job in the past and present making sure recyclables like glass, plastic, cardboard and common metals aren’t often dumped on roadsides, and he — and many others — would like to see such efforts continue.
Furthermore, he agreed that they don’t need to, once again, be taking up space in landfills.
Trigg County’s Recycling Center can be found at 2759 Hopkinsville Road.
