Greensboro, N.C. -- The City Council has voted to sign a three-year contract with Republic Waste Services and Hilco Transport to continue trucking the city's trash to the Uwharrie Landfill in Montgomery County.
The new deal will save the city approximately one-million dollars a year. However, this is still only a temporary solution to the city's trash situation. Mayor Robbie Perkins says the goal is to find ways to save even more money and to also place more of an emphasis on recycling.
"Trash is a business where you can do it efficiently if you put a lot of it together. And, I think we are still in a state where disposing of our municipal solid waste in the ground is still affordable. But, over time, it's going to get to the point where it needs to get converted from waste to energy," Perkins said.
People who live near the city's White Street Landfill fought to prevent the gates from re-opening. Now, Perkins says they do not need to worry anymore.
"White Street is not on the table. There is no possibility of reopening White Street for municipal solid waste. That's off the table. That's not a consideration. That's not been talked about," Perkins said.
Perkins' words bring comfort and relief to community members who live near the White Street Landfill.
"We showed persistence. The community came together. We all got together. We got community groups together. People went out and put flyers on doors. We came to community council meetings. We spoke and we were heard. We thank God for that," resident Michael Franklin said. "I want to thank the mayor. I want to thank the city council. I want to thank all of the people involved."
To read some of the documents and information the city council gathered to reach this decision, click here.
WFMY News 2