County Commissioner's Office

County Talk
By
Lamar Paris - Commissioner

Q. Why is the road department putting tar and gravel on some of the roads? It leaves loose gravel and dust that gets on my vehicle.
A. This has been an aggravating process for several people who have called, but we are saving thousands and thousands of dollars in sealing broken pavement prior to the winter months. With the 60% rise in asphalt prices this past year, the more sealing and protecting of our pavement we can do, even with some aggravation, the better it will be. While Union County alone can not have an impact on asphalt prices, we are going to use as little as possible and delay some paving projects if necessary next year. If enough counties and the state could do that, we could have an impact on the asphalt price, the same as the public can do by reducing gasoline consumption. If our national leaders do not do something to lessen our dependency on foreign oil, the terrorists are going to continue to get stronger and stronger - with our money. Why do few in Washington seem to be listening or learning from our past mistakes? (Republican or Democrat) We have lots of problems in America, but few as serious as our dependency on foreign oil.

Q. There were two articles in the newspaper regarding littering and junk cars. The first letter was unsigned and ridicules me (commissioner) for not doing more about litter and states that litter is becoming worse and worse each year. Is that really true?
A. There are about three or four people who send unsigned letters to my office on a fairly regular basis complaining about the litter on the roads and they claim the county is doing nothing about it and it is the worst it has ever been. They are wrong on many counts. The litter on all state roads, Hwy 515, Hwy 129, Hwy 325 & 180 and other state routes is the responsibility of the Georgia Department of Transportation. The county employees can not pick up trash on those roads. Second, the county picks up litter constantly. Here are some recent totals and dates from roads that have been picked up. Dec- Loving Rd, Gumlog Rd, Pat Haralson, Ivylog Rd, Smyrna, Blue Ridge Hwy, for a total of 1040 lbs. (150 bags) Nov.- Trackrock Gap, Kiutuestia, Cooperhead, Jones Cr. 760 lbs – (90 bags), Sept – 940 lbs, Aug. 1020 lbs., July 1400 lbs., June 3100 lbs, May 4000 lbs, April 2980 lbs, March 7000 lbs, Feb 4100 lbs, Jan 3140 lbs. Every time we pick up litter it rapidly re-appears on the same roads.

Q. Why can’t you have some employees who do nothing else every day but pick up trash?
A. Because the end does not justify the means. We have a few people who call and want us to double our sheriff’s department employees so there will be more deputy cars on the road. Well, it would be nice to do all of these things, but the county finances will not allow all of this to happen. Employee cost is the majority of any county’s budget and too many employees will be a tremendous burden on the taxpayers. After recently receiving our tax bills, none of us are in the mood to incur any additional cost that is not absolutely necessary.

We utilize our employees to do many different jobs and not just to specialize. This is the only way to keep cost down. When we have projects going on in the county that require all hands to assist, such as completing the courthouse, preparing the property for the drivers license center, repairing roads and patching roads prior to winter, litter pickup sometimes is delayed. During the winter, litter is more apparent than in the summer because grass and weeds die out making the litter more visible. Luckily, we also have more time in the winter to pick up trash, which starts in earnest in January.

Our road department responds to litter issues when made aware of them and we pick up even when there are no complaints. However, we utilize employees, detainees, and probationers all for litter pickup. If anyone can come up with a method to prevent people from littering, every county in Georgia would be very interested.

Q. Why do people continue to litter our road ways?
A. There is nothing more frustrating than to see the results of people who have no more concern or respect for the beauty of our county than to recklessly abuse our roadways. However, on the other hand, as I have said before, if you keep your head in the ditch lines, all you will see is litter. If you will look up at the beauty of our area, the litter is not nearly so obvious. We have and will continue to regularly pick up litter on the road ways, but it is not going to go away until we are able to catch those responsible and change the culture. Unfortunately, that is almost impossible.

Q. There was one article accusing the county of allowing additional junk cars to be added to already junky areas. Why is this allowed?
A. The county can not be everywhere and we are not aware of additional junk vehicles that were added at the two locations mentioned in the article. The ordinance does not allow additional vehicles to be added without a permit. We rely on the public to let us know when and if junk vehicles are being added to an area. We have had several calls, but most involve old junk yards that only contain old vehicles that have been there for years. We wonder why this writer has not complained to us instead of putting the letter in the newspaper. If he has more specific details, we would be glad to check out the problem. Call the road department at 706-439-6062 with complaints.

Q. How many people in Union County volunteer to pick up trash on our roadways?
A. We do not have an official number, but think it is around 100 people. We know there are many that volunteer to pick up in their area of which we have no record. Without the assistance of these volunteers, our litter problem would be even greater. Their work is appreciated. I would like to know how much litter the unnamed letter writers and viewpoint writers volunteer to pick up in the county. Each year we have a county wide clean up day with volunteers meeting at Meeks Park for a morning county wide cleanup. If we have ten people volunteer, it is an above average number. So while this is a serious issue to some people, others are not so concerned. We continue to work hard at making the best of a bad situation.

The Suches area also has cleanup days, but their participation is much greater than on this side of the mountain. Thanks again to all who assist in making this a better county in which to live.

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