Town of Eston is trying to keep usable goods out of the landfill

By Joan Janzen
joanjanzen@yahoo.com

The Town of Eston is venturing out and introducing a new initiative which they’re calling Scavenger Saturdays. When people hear the word scavenger, they automatically associate it with scavenger hunts and children, but Scavenger Saturdays are designed for adults.

Jody Schmidt, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) for the Town of Eston, explained how the new initiative works. Beginning on July 17, Scavenger Saturdays will be held once a month on a trial basis at the town’s landfill.

Previously, scavenging at the landfill was strictly prohibited, but on these designated Saturdays, it will be permitted.

Jody explained that a landfill committee composed of members of the Town of Eston and the RM of Snipe Lake got together. They discussed other communities which have a ‘take it or leave it building’ where useful items can be set on a shelf in an organized fashion where they can be picked up and used by someone else.

“We’ve seen some really good items going into the landfill, and it’s sad. Somebody else’s garbage can be somebody else’s treasure,” Jody said. For example, someone could throw away a lawnmower, which runs perfectly fine, because they got a new one. People have also commented that they’ve noticed useful items such as these in the landfill but were unable to take them because it was against the rules. So the town and the RM thought, why not initiate a recycling and reuse concept where people can take an item from the landfill if they can use it. “It just preserves the life of the landfill. Ideally, it would be nice to have a building to store useful items, but we thought we would try this to see how it works out,” she concluded.

The trial run will take place on July 17 in an effort to keep usable goods out of the landfill. Safety will be a priority, as staff will not be available to help scavenge or load items. Everyone in attendance will be there at their own risk.

“Landfill staff will be monitoring it, and we’ll see how it goes and whether we will pursue it further,” Jody said. “We hope it goes well.”