Want to get rid of your trash for free?
And not put it in a landfill?
Well, circle March 16, 2021 between 1 pm and 4 pm at the Entsorga West Virginia facility at 870 Grapevine Road in Martinsburg.
Entsorga West Virginia is calling it a community free day.
No, your trash won’t be going into a landfill.
Entsorga uses municipal solid waste as a feedstock for solid recovered fuel. The fuel is used by Argos in Martinsburg to make cement.
Clint Hogbin, chair of the Berkeley County Solid Waste Authority, is encouraging residents of Morgan County and the Eastern Panhandle to take advantage of Entsorga’s community free day.
“Entsorga achieved 78% landfill diversion in 2020 while producing 11,062 tons of fuel,” Hogbin said. “It’s important for Eastern Panhandle residents to support the Entsorga facility as a means to protect landfill space, while generating an alternative fuel for those industries that can benefit from it.”
Trash trucks are feeding the Entsorga facility on a daily basis, but March 16 will mark the first time that the public will be able to take their trash to Entsorga to get it burned for fuel.
Emily Dyson of Entsorga West Virginia emphasized that the Entsorga facility is not a landfill and there is a list of items they cannot accept (* indicates that if you have these, you should drop them off at the recycling center before proceeding to Entsorga):
Aerosol Cans*, Ammunition, Antifreeze*, Batteries*, Bulky goods (for example, appliances, furniture, white goods, scrap metals)*, Brush*, Car parts (for example, transmissions, engine parts), Clean, source separated recyclables*, Chemicals (pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, pool chemicals), Compressed Gas containers (propane tanks), Construction and Demolition Waste (for example, lumber, drywall, concrete, bricks, electrical wiring), Dead Animals/Carcasses, E-waste including computers, charging cables, monitors, auxiliary drives (electronics – because of copper and mercury)*, Fluorescent bulbs/CFLs (because of mercury content)*, Hazardous Waste, Liquid Wastes, Lumber Mattresses, Medical waste, Used Oil*, Paint/Paint Cans (unless empty), Pallets*, Radios*, Radioactive or special wastes, Scrap metal*, Septic Tank pumpings, Sewage Sludge Slurries, Thermometers, smoke detectors, thermostats (because of mercury content), Tires*(Berkeley County Solid Waste Authority has special days), TVs*, Wiring*, Yard Waste*.
Allowable waste includes, but is not limited to — organics (food waste), clothing, soiled paper/cardboard, plastics (#4-7 on the bottom of the package in the triangle), dirty plastics, packaging, bags, and styrofoam.
Waste should be bagged as the roll-offs used at Entsorga are above ground and material will be tossed in over the side.
There will be no shovels or equipment available to move loose waste from vehicles to rolloffs.
Everyone will enter the facility by way of the recycling center.
There is a lane that connects the recycling center to Entsorga.
The public will drop off all recyclables and then bring the remaining acceptable materials to the Entsorga facility.
Dyson said that all waste will be inspected, to the extent possible, prior to entering the Entsorga facility.
If waste is found to be unacceptable – that is, containing any of the above list, the vehicle will be turned away from the facility.
Once inspected, the driver will receive a receipt and will enter the facility.
Dyson said that drivers should not go over the scale. Drivers will proceed to the right of the scale and turn into the public dropoff area. Once there, one person will exit the vehicle and place waste into the rolloffs available.
Attendants will be available to assist you, if necessary. For everyone’s safety, at no time, should children be allowed out of vehicles. Customers should be prepared to show their receipt given to them at the entrance to attendants. Vehicles should proceed to exit the property by turning left out of the public drop-off area and staying to the right of the scale.
The facility will still be accepting trash trucks during this time. The trash trucks will have the right of way. All traffic signs, safety signs, and attendant’s instructions must be followed while onsite.