The bottom line of nearly two hours of public testimony Thursday about Flathead County’s garbage collection sites is that Bigfork and Lakeside residents want to keep their green boxes — period.

A long-range strategic report for the landfill that recommends closing both the Bigfork and Lakeside green-box sites as part of an overall consolidation plan was called into question last year as the Solid Waste District Board moved ahead with plans to close the two sites.

When overwhelming opposition to the closures erupted, the board agreed to revisit both the green-box consolidation and recycling portions of the strategic plan.

A group of 11 stakeholders ranging from private haulers to community representatives and consultants met following Thursday’s public comment session to talk about the strategic plan review.

Kevin Severe of Lakeside said he felt the decision already has been made to continue the green-box consolidation.

“This is just lip service and a feel-good community meeting,” he said.

Paul Mutascio, president of the Community Foundation for a Better Bigfork and one of the stakeholders at the workshop, said he wondered if the green-box consolidation had been studied before it was written into the plans as a foregone conclusion.

“The decision had already been made [for green-box consolidation] before the strategic plan was done,” Mutascio alleged. “You guys never really looked at the issues.”

He urged the county to take a “time out” to consider what’s best for its citizens, and stressed that garbage collection is an essential service much like law enforcement and fire protection.

“If you’re going to make such a fundamental change, it needs to be well-thought-out. And your analysis comparing us to others has to be relevant,” Mutascio said, pointing out the rural nature of Flathead County.

Barb Miller, a member of the Lakeside Community Council, also said the county didn’t consider the rural character of the area when it began consolidating green-box sites. Speaking for the council, Miller said Lakeside doesn’t want to lose its site.

“Not one single person is in favor of closing Lakeside or Bigfork” sites, she said, calling the strategic plan “flawed.”

Many of the reasons for opposing the consolidation were reiterated from past discussions with the Solid Waste Board. Some homes are too rural and the driveways too long to get private refuse service. It will cost more for fuel to drive to Somers or Creston; estimates ranged from $300 to $1,000 a year more depending on a resident’s proximity to the other sites.

The Somers green-box site is a traffic hazard, Miller pointed out, and would need turn lanes, a blinking light and other measures to make it safe.

If Lakeside and Bigfork green boxes are discontinued, some people will throw their trash in the woods or let it pile up in yards, several people testified.

Faith Brynie of Bigfork presented a petition with 778 signatures to the stakeholder group requesting the Solid Waste District to retain the Bigfork and Lakeside sites.

“We don’t see this as consolidation,” Brynie said. “We see this as closure.”

The green-box system works well in Flathead County, she added. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Bud Salyer of Marion said he attended one of the public meetings prior to the Marion and Kila green-box closures in 2009 and sees the same pattern unfolding this time around. Eliminating the Marion and Kila sites and creating a new site at Ashley Lake also prompted public meetings with residents angry about losing their service.

“You’re not listening,” Salyer told county officials. “We’re supposed to be the boss. We pay your wages. You’ve turned from public servants to trash czars.”

He called the strategic plan “a bunch of ideas on how not to serve the public.”

Mayre Flowers, director of Citizens for a Better Flathead, pointed out that only a third of county residents currently use the green boxes.

“How do we create a solid waste system that’s efficient and equitable for all?” she asked. “Reducing rural green bin sites reduces the number of recycling sites and thus discourages recycling if convenient alternatives are not provided.”

Flowers stressed the need for more education about recycling, noting that if just 25 percent of all the recyclables tossed into the landfill were diverted, it would save more than $1 million a year.

Many in the audience called for more public meetings on the matter, held in the evenings when more working folks can attend. Thursday’s comment session was the only public meeting scheduled for the strategic plan review.

Several people also said they would be willing to pay a little more for the county’s Solid Waste District taxes if it meant keeping their green boxes.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.