The last article provided an overview of solid waste in Idaho County. Our focus today will be dumpsters. 
As mentioned, somewhere in the 1970s, the dumpster appeared on the solid waste scene and lives on today.  The dumpsters eliminated sorting and became the perceived depository of every form of waste despite signs, newspaper articles and various rules to try to control their use.  They soon became the favorite and convenient place to discard everything that one wanted to get rid of from butchering leftovers, deceased pets, camper shells, appliances, furniture, tires, remodel and re-roof debris, old fencing – you name it.  If there wasn’t room in the dumpster, it went on the ground.  Or, in the alternative, someone just lit it on fire and when the flames subsided, they were heaped up again.  That still goes on regularly today.   
A common complaint expressed is “the dumpsters are always full – you need to put another one or two out there.”  All that really means is that there will be more overflowing dumpsters, despite adding additional pick-up days to the schedule. Additionally, regardless of how full they may be, Mother Nature is happy to fill them even more with rain and snow. 
No matter what else is in the dumpster, if there is ANY household waste mixed in, the whole load gets shipped out to Missoula or Payette.  Yes, there is some sorting at the transfer station where the contents of the dumpster find their way into the semi van that hauls it to the landfill but it is impossible to sort out the absorbed rain water and snow which is added to the weight of the load.  During the fall, winter and spring months, the trailers can only be partially loaded due to weight.  Efficiency is compromised due to the added weight caused by dumpsters exposed to the elements.   
The county is charged by the ton for that lift to the closest landfill, as well as for other expenses such as cleaning up around the dumpsters, and repairing, repainting or replacing the dumpsters after people use them for burn barrels. These costs are all covered in a solid waste agreement with the contractor who does the work on behalf of the county. The contract costs are reflected in the solid waste fee that is part of property owner’s tax bill.  
Although these costs are born entirely by those who own property in the county, there exists the problem of unauthorized use.  Because the dumpsters are spread out across our large rural area, anyone passing by has the ability to drop off their unwanted items.  People from adjacent Counties and visitors to our area are examples of folks using the county dumpsters that don’t help to pay for them.   
I’m sure we are all guilty of at least some of the abuses listed above, so this is not intended to be an indictment. Rather, becoming aware of what is actually happening within the county is vital to finding a solution moving forward to eliminate the pariah that the dumpster has become.  
In a future edition: Solutions