Three groups with interests in Lake Lanier have asked the Hall County Commission for some help when it comes to cleaning up what they call a "styrofoam graveyard" near the Olympic Park on Clarks Bridge Road.
Kelly Norman with Keep Hall Beautiful told commissioners at a work session Monday afternoon that volunteers want to clear away some 15 tons of styrofoam and other trash in a cove that's been a problem for years. Norman said now is the perfect time to do the clean-up job.
"Now that the lake has receded as much as it has and because fall is upon us and the brush has lessened, we have greater access to it [the cove]," said Norman.
She said a volunteer who has access to heavy equipment approached her group and the Lake Lanier Association during Shore Sweep 2016, telling them that he would help pull the styrofoam out of the cove.
The groups, including Keep Hall Beautiful, the Lake Lanier Association and the Lake Lanier CVB, want the commissioners to waive the tipping fee at the county landfill, as well as fees for any county labor that may be needed.
County Public Works Director Ken Rearden said the expense would not be big - $40 per ton of garbage collected - but it would make a big difference on that area of the lake.
"We have to take a roll-off out there for them to put the styrofoam in, we have to have manpower to drive the trucks and things like that," Rearden said. "That's what the commission's taking action on."
Commissioners are scheduled to vote on the request Thursday night.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2016/11/467433/hall-county-officials-asked-to-waive-fees-for-clean-up-of-styrofoam-graveyard-on-lake-lanier