Colfax and Elk Mound solid waste and recycling sites changing hours as of January 1
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Editor’s Note: LeAnn R. Ralph serves as chair of the Town of Otter Creek and as the Otter Creek representative on the Colfax Solid Waste & Recycling Committee
By LeAnn R. Ralph
COLFAX — As of January 1, the Colfax and Elk Mound solid waste and recycling sites will be changing the hours of operation by expanding hours on Wednesdays and reducing hours on Saturdays.
Site attendants reported to the Colfax Solid Waste & Recycling Committee at the August 27 meeting that they are seeing an unexpected number of people bringing trash and recyclables on Wednesdays.
The two collection sites currently are open from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays all year.
As of January 1, the collection sites will be open from 11 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays all year.
The collection sites are currently open on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
As of January 1, the collection sites will be open from 7 a.m. to noon on Saturdays all year.
The CSW&R committee made the changes in hours with two goals in mind: to provide more hours of operation on Wednesdays; and to allow site attendants to have their Saturday afternoons available.
When asked if 7 a.m. on Saturdays in the middle of winter would pose a problem because sunrise is much later on winter mornings, Terry Stamm, who represents the Village of Elk Mound and who also works at the Elk Mound site, said the biggest problem might be snow removal early in the morning on a Saturday.
On the other hand, if that much snow has fallen and the roads have not yet been opened up by 7 a.m., area residents probably are not going to be worrying about their trash and recyclables until their own driveways — as well as their local roads — have been cleared.
The Village of Colfax is the Responsible Unit for recycling.
State law requires all municipalities to either be their own responsible unit for recycling or must join another municipality’s RU.
In addition to the Villages of Colfax and Elk Mound, other members of the Colfax RU include the Towns of Colfax, Grant, Otter Creek, Tainter and Wilson on the “Colfax side” and the Towns of Elk Mound and Spring Brook on the “Elk Mound side.”
Residents living in any of the nine municipalities can take their trash and recyclables to either Colfax or Elk Mound.
Pay raises
The CSW&R Committee also learned at the August 27 meeting that the Colfax RU is not paying as much as other RUs in the area and that site attendants could be leaving to work elsewhere.
The Colfax RU currently pays $17 per hour for attendants and $18 per hour for lead attendants.
Neighboring RUs are paying up to $25 per hour.
The CSW&R Committee approved a pay increase of up to $7 per hour more for site attendants and leads, with the daily management crew determining the exact pay raises based on length of service and other measures of evaluation.
The daily management of the solid waste and recycling sites is performed by the lead attendants, Stamm, and Lynn Niggemann, who is the clerk-treasurer for the RU.
Niggemann previously served as the administrator-clerk-treasurer for the Village of Colfax.
She accepted the position of Dunn County treasurer in April of this year but has agreed to continue working for the RU.
Although the 2025 budget is still preliminary, the pay raises will not increase the per capita fee paid by the municipalities.
The per capita for 2024 is $25.75 for the Colfax side of the RU and is $36.47 for the Elk Mound side of the RU.
Revenue and expenses for the two collection sites are calculated separately.
The per capita for the Colfax side of the RU is less because there is more population on the Colfax side.
Clear plastic
The Colfax and Elk Mound collection sites have transitioned this year to using clear plastic trash bags.
Site attendants said they wanted clear plastic bags for trash because so many recyclable items were ending up in trash, and the clear plastic bags make it easier to see if there are recyclables mixed with the trash.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources oversees the Responsible Units and has a set number of pounds of recyclables that must be collected per person every year.
For the first three years of operation, the Colfax RU has been unable to meet the quota for recyclables.
The two sites are currently selling 13 gallon clear plastic trash bags at 4 for $1, and 33 gallon clear plastic trash bags at 3 for $1.
The Colfax and Elk Mound sites will be adding 55 gallon clear plastic trash bags for sale at $1 each.
The 55 gallon clear plastic trash bags are made of a thicker plastic.
Residents in the RU have been asking for larger trash bags to fit larger trash barrels they have in their garages or workshops.
