In an effort to curb roadside eyesores around town, Wrangell Public Works announced at last week’s meeting of the Borough Assembly its intention to allow people to dispose of their excess scrap metal for free through the end of December.
The twice-extended arrangement was initially meant to last through mid-November, when a construction firm was expected to bring a barge to retrieve the city’s scrap. Channel Construction of Juneau had previously removed tons of the stuff earlier this April, in an arrangement where it charged no fees for the removal in exchange for the city foregoing reimbursement for salvageable material.
Another such exchange was informally agreed to between the two parties, but getting the barge up to Wrangell has taken longer than expected.
“We’ve actually had a little bit of a change,” said Public Works director Amber Al-Haddad during the December 5 meeting. “They were originally coming in December but they’ve had another project delay.”
The firm may now be stopping through in January, so the department will be extending its deadline for free disposal of metallic materials at the waste transfer yard through the year’s end.
Since at least September the Assembly has set its attentions on tightening enforcement of the ban on public nuisances. In municipal code this includes the open storage of scrap, abandoned vehicles and other eyesores in public. At the time, the focus had been on removing unwanted vehicles abandoned at public park places, but the code extends also to private property.
Borough manager Lisa Von Bargen has since been directed to make removal of these nuisances a higher priority. While she met with the heads of the harbor and police department about enforcement efforts earlier in the fall, Von Bargen reported she would need to revisit with them on the issue.
“I need to check with the police chief on where we are,” she said.
Beginning in May 2018 Assembly members want to see fines issued for continued clutter, but also want to see sufficient notice and opportunity given for residents to comply.
“What we have not done yet is send personal invitations,” Von Bargen said. Letters informing those that are out of compliance are in the process of being drafted, she said.
“I think we have to do that. People do not know we are talking about them,” commented Assembly member Stephen Prysunka. This means disused vehicles like cars and boats, rusting piles of scrap or broken equipment, and other items. The policy will apply to harbors too, not just with abandoned cars but with lease properties as well.
“We have bushes growing out of machinery out at Shoemaker Bay,” Prysunka noted.
Since the springtime removal of scrap from the yard, Al-Haddad said there had seemed to be fewer new disposals than she expected. Before that point the transfer facility had been at its capacity and unable to accept much more.
The department will continue trying to get the word out through notices and public media. For free disposal, any scrap metal that is brought must be from a household source and free of all attached contaminants like wood, rubber, plastic and fabrics. To qualify as “scrap metal,” the item for recycling must contain a minimum of 85 percent metal.
Large household appliances will be accepted, but must be cleaned out and free of garbage. Washers and dryers, stoves and ranges, hot water tanks, microwaves, dishwashers and other white goods with metal housing apply. Fuel and propane tanks must be empty of all materials and a hole must be cut in the bottom to ensure they are empty.
Old automobiles are also wanted, though vehicles and small engines must be drained of all fluids by the customer beforehand, including all fuel, engine oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid and so forth. The waste transfer station has drums available for customers to dispose of vehicular fluids at regular disposal fees.
Batteries must be removed and will also be accepted for free. Tires must be removed too, and will be accepted at the regular disposal fee of $3 apiece. Ownership title for each vehicle must be presented at the time of disposal.
For more information about the free scrap metal session, or to discuss options for commercial operations’ scrap metal disposal, contact Wrangell Public Works at 874-3904.
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