Marietta seeks help with garbage site

MARIETTA — A solid waste collection site in rural Robeson County has residents in Marietta seeking help from Robeson County.

The site at 2340 Marietta Road adjacent to the Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church Family and Community Life Center, contains three very large dumpster style containers, all of which regularly fill up before they can be hauled away by Robeson County Solid Waste crews.

Marietta resident James Edwards, who addressed Robeson County commissioners Monday during a public comment period, said the site is well-used but it needs to be maintained better.

The site is one of “20 full-service collection sites which are staffed, secure and professionally operated,” according to information published on the Robeson County Solid Waste web page.

However, when the Robesonian visited the Marietta site on Monday afternoon, no one was around.

At least two of the massive collection bins were overflowing with bags of garbage and had more garbage bags stacked against them.

“The community is having to go in, throw their trash in these big, high dumpsters,” Edwards said. “The elderly can’t even reach to put the trash in.”

“Sometimes I’ve been out there and even seen animals thrown out there,” Edwards said. “It’s an environmental issue, it’s a health issue. It’s not just for me; I’m looking out for these elderly people out there.”

“Now, each one of you in this county — this great county of Robeson — I know you wouldn’t want this in your area,” Edwards said.

Donna Oliver Stubbs, echoed the concern saying to her knowledge the site has existed for more than 35 years.

She said she had collected the signatures of 500 people that use the site, all of whom said they wanted to keep the site.

“I was at the post office last week and two out of the four people I met there said, ‘It’s all we can do to get to the Marietta site. There’s no way we can get to sites further away.’ They were elderly people.”

On Tuesday, Kellie Hunt Blue, Robeson County manager said, “We will continue to review options and data associated with that site as we do with all the sites.”

Information posted on the county’s solid waste site states, “Robeson County Solid Waste currently employs 25 full-time staff and 79 part-time staff. The Department includes the following areas: landfill, 20 collection sites, recycling, and methane to energy generator program, environmental control as well [as] a full-time garage.”

Garbage from the 20 collection sites is hauled to the landfill in St. Pauls.