Hollidaysburg targets recycling scofflaws
Nine citations filed against businesses who refuse to comply
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HOLLIDAYSBURG -- Business owners who refuse to comply with Hollidaysburg Borough recycling rules could soon be shedding green, local codes officer Patrick Rabits said.
Nine citations have recently been filed against "several" businesses and trash haulers who have not followed recycling rules, Rabits said last week.
The citations were the result of a "lack of recycling and separating of recycling," he said.
In Hollidaysburg, residents and business owners are required to recycle by state mandate.
The recent citations were "initiated" by the Intermunicipal Relations Committee, Rabits said.
The Intermunicipal Relations Committee oversees recycling in a several Blair County communities, including Hollidaysburg Borough, that fall under the recycling mandate.
Executive Director John Frederick said IRC officials periodically visit Hollidaysburg and other communities to ensure recycling rules are being followed.
"We do it when we are able or when we see a need to do it," Frederick said.
In Hollidaysburg, Frederick said he and Rabits work together to enforce those rules, meeting about once a month.
When a property owner or trash hauler does not comply with recycling rules, IRC officials will send letters or do site visits, asking for correction before citations are filed.
"We really try hard to offer assistance and instruction," Frederick said. "If people just ignore their requirements … then we resort to more aggressive enforcement."
After that initial round of assistance and instruction, IRC officials will revisit problem businesses and haulers to see if issues were corrected.
If they were not corrected, citations can be filed.
The nine citations recently filed in Hollidaysburg, will appear before a local magisterial district judge, who will determine whether or not a penalty is warranted, as well as how severe that penalty will be.
Per a Hollidaysburg ordinance, fines for failure to recycle range from $100 to $1,000, Frederick said.
It is rare for citations and fines to be issued, Frederick said.
"We generally get a pretty positive response, and we usually get correction of the deficiencies within a reasonable period of time," he said. "There are lots of success stories in our outreach."
Frederick said about 21 percent of his on-the-clock time has been spent on enforcement over the past five pay periods.
"It's a bit frustrating that it has to resort to this," he said. "Recycling is not that hard, and it's not that expensive."
Mirror Staff Writer Sean Sauro is at 946-7535.