License applications nixed for trash transfer stations

The Clark County Health District has rejected applications from three licensed trash recycling companies that sought to operate under transfer-station status.

The companies are presently licensed under Clark County codes to recycle unusable construction materials for resale. The ruling means they will be unable to store the material on site for long periods of time without recycling it.

The companies that were denied approval on Thursday are: Evergreen Corp., 5491 Accurate Drive; Nevada Construction Cleanup Inc., 2745 N. Nellis Blvd.; and Lunas Construction Clean Up Inc., 4830 E. Cartier Ave.

Representatives from Silver State Disposal Service, which has an exclusive franchise with Clark County to handle solid-waste disposal, said the transfer-station classification would have been in violation of Silver State's agreement.

The board also voted to immediately begin workshops to review the county's recycling and salvage yard regulations. Companies that currently have licenses to operate will be encouraged to participate.

"We are pleased with the decision because the Board of Health will let them operate as recycling and salvage yards," Greg Walch, Silver State's counsel, said. "The district now has the authority in their hands to regulate who will be allowed to recycle or operate salvage yards."

Walch said the health district's staff inappropriately put the three recyclers in an awkward position of applying for transfer-station permits, when they didn't need them. He said transfer stations, where trash is held before being transported to a landfill, are considered a part of the solid-waste system.

Robert Dorinson, owner of Evergreen Corp., said he voluntarily stopped recycling operations, until the board approved his transfer-station application. He was concerned about spending more money to meet additional Clark County Fire Department requirements, as requested by the Health District, and then not receiving a permit.

"What are the standard to which our applications are being held?" Dorinson asked. "Are these standards firm, or arbitrary?"

After the board voted for denial, Dorinson was visibly upset with what he felt was Silver State's involvement in quashing the applications.

"What you have here is a defacto monopoly that eliminates competition," Dorinson said.

Walch denies that Silver State is trying to put Dorinson and the other companies out of business. He said Silver State just wants them to be correctly licensed as recyclers or salvage yards.

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