Carol Evans says she’s ‘scared to death.?
As president of the Springfield Township-based Smith’s Disposal, Evans recently went millions of dollars into debt so she could buy out her brother and business partner, Ken Smith, rather than join him in retirement.
It was only a few months later, she said, when rumors about government sponsored changes to local garbage hauling practices made her wonder if Smith’s days were numbered.
Seven Oakland County townships are currently involved in voluntary study to explore solid waste and recycling management.
Participating communities include Springfield, Independence, Brandon, Groveland, Waterford, West Bloomfield and White Lake.
The study, a Capital and Cooperative Initiatives Revolving Fund (CCIRF) initiative, is not yet finalized, but collaboration between participating communities could lead to expanded services and recycling.
CCIRF is an Oakland County program established to pay for independent, third-party consulting, which’ideally’identifies the feasibility and benefits of cooperative efforts between communities.
Potential benefits in this case include reduction of costs to communities and individual residents while also implementing cutting-edge conversion technologies to reduce the need for landfill disposal.
But while collaboration could present a number of benefits, facilitators say one potential outcome is implementation of a single-hauler system for solid waste services.
In other words, local government officials contract with one company on behalf of its residents for trash and recycling services.
‘If that happens, I lose everything. I’m fighting for my life, my business, my home, my employees; everything,? Evans said after attending a Springfield Township board meeting last week to hear a study updategiven by Resource Recycling Systems (RRS), the Ann Arbor-based firm facilitating the study.?
As a smaller company’and one that recently went deep into debt’Evans said Smith’s Disposal won’t be able to compete with bids from a larger hauler.
With worry growing daily, Evans recently sent a letter outlining her concerns to Smith’s 22,000 customers.
‘Our phones have been ringing off the hook,? she said. ‘People are in an uproar and don’t want to be told by the government who they can have as their garbage hauler.?
But Anna Collinson, a project manager with RRS, said it’s too early to draw conclusions or make assumptions about the study’s outcome.
The project, she said, aims to answer three questions:
‘Can certain efficiencies be achieved by these communities working together?
‘What systems can be implemented to increase recycling and waste diversion?
‘Can emerging technologies provide good, sound alternatives to disposal of waste in landfills?
Collinson said that while ‘there’s always the potential? for a company to be put out of business when’and if’changes occur, she noted Smith’s has a large customer base and a solid reputation in the community.
‘We think there’s a lot of opportunity for Smith’s,? Collinson said. ‘Their concerns are valid, but at the same time I don’t think the end is near for them.?
Springfield Township Supervisor Mike Trout, who asked to join the study after hearing from other participating communities, generally concurred and said it was not his intention or desire to see Smith’s, or any other local company, put out of business.
‘That will probably be one of the things I look at most closely,? he said at last week’s meeting.
Still, Carol Evans had questions that remain unanswered.
Why, for example, did her company’s name not appear as a choice in an online survey posted on the websites of several participating communities?
‘I don’t want to fight with anyone,? she said. ‘But I’m frustrated. I thought I had a good relationship with the township, but I keep getting the run-around. I can’t get any straight answers.?
Collinson said RRS will present a final report, including recommendations, by the end of May or early June.