DALTON, Mass. — The Board of Health is looking to issue an educational pamphlet on recycling to residents and waste haulers after haulers failed to report their tonnage.

The company Solid Waste Haulers was not reporting its tonnage quarterly as required. This sparked a conversation with the Green Committee about the need to educate the public about recycling.

"I don't think the residents of Dalton know that recycling is mandatory, so I think the Green Committee is going to do some education during Earth Week about the fact that recycling is mandatory," Nancy Hopper said.

The solid waste town bylaws adopted in 2020, states that all generators in town must separate recyclables whether by taking them to the transfer station, contract with a hauler, or deposit recyclables in recycling receptacles provided by owner.

According to the solid waste haulers regulations, haulers must report their tonnage to the Board of Health quarterly. They must also send out public education materials.

One out of seven haulers supplied their tonnage report and reported who is not recycling. Dave Baumann Trucking was the only one who reported tonnage and described how they report their recyclables.

"[Green Committee member] Laurie Martinelli and I are going to meet with Linda Cernik who manages Northern Berkshire Waste Management, about this issue, and how that the small haulers would be able to weigh their tonnage, and where they would do it, and then, and we were going to put that directly into a letter to give the small haulers, and then we can put it in permanent about how that they're supposed to report it quarterly," Hopper said.

The board decided to send out a letter to the waste haulers with the reiteration of the bylaws stating they must be reporting their refuse and recyclable tonnage, recycle information as well before a formal warning if they do not report their tonnage in March.

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