BY MARCELLE HANEMANN
The Daily News

Bogalusa Mayor Wendy Perrette said through no fault of the city, she is going to have cut the citywide Spring Cleanup short, due to Department of Environmental Quality action. As a result, Church Street and Austin Street will no longer have the Spring Cleanup dumpsters.
“Approximately 20 years ago, we started having a Spring Cleanup in the city,” she said. “We placed dumpsters in each district, in turn. Since I’ve been mayor, I’ve continued to do that. But every year, somebody puts tires in the dumpsters, even though we ask them not to. The trash guys don’t dispose of tires, so they take them out and put them in a pile next to the dumpsters.”
This year Bogalusa Councilwoman Gloria Kates called the DEQ to report the tires, and the agency came to Bogalusa and talked with Director of Public Works James Hall, who had already worked the situation out with the director of the landfill.
“Now we have to pay a fine of $3 for each of the 90 tires,” Hall said. “That’s $270, and there’s got to be a paper trail. If I do anything before the work order is complete we get fined $25,000 a day. So we’re stuck with the tires longer.”
“We have to follow procedures,” Perrette said. “And we have procedures in place.”
Hall requests that Bogalusa residents or businesses that have tires to dispose of, take them to the landfill themselves. He said the landfill does not charge individuals for tires.
Perrette said she believes Kates was only trying to help, by calling in the DEQ.
For her part, the councilwoman said that on May 25 a work order was submitted because numerous tires had been placed out side a Waste Connections trash dumpster placed at Church Street and Austin Street for the Spring Cleanup.
“The request was made to please remove and transport to the tires for disposal,” she said. “As a result, I was informed that the city no longer picked up used tires. And, in turn, I relayed to Public Works that I’d be exploring other options and to please advise.
“There were many citizen complaints and concerns, therefore, as mentioned, additional options were sought due to the (fact that the) city, parish, and trash collectors could not remove these tires. EPA and/or DEQ were among other resources to possibly have a solution to rid this hazard.
“As a happy ending, on May 30, DEQ was able to assist. Inspector Chris Mangum and his partner afforded the city the opportunity to apply for a tire generator number along with processor list. To date the tires had been covered with tarp until removal. This assistance is highly appreciated.”
Hall explained that the city had to apply for a Waste Tire Single Event Cleanup, and said he signed and sent it that same day.
“The DEQ has to furnish the city with a number, and they told me not to touch the tires until I get it,” he said.
As of early Friday, Hall had not gotten that number.