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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTrash Cop Teaches, Too _ ~-o~~~ I Trash cop teaches, too Peter Barllaro, College Station's sanitation Inspector or "trash cop" stands at the top of one of the city's garbage trucks looking for Items which people are not allowe~ to throw In the trash. As sanitation inspector for College Sctation, Peter Barilaro is a police 'officer and teacher. "I'm a trash cop," Barilaro said. In addition to enforcing a variety of city ordinances pertaining to trash, he teaches Texas A&M students, busi- nesses and the public about what they can do to reduce the amount of waste going into the landf1ll and keep College Station beautiful. "Most people are not aware that the regulations have become very, very stringent," Barilaro said. Barilaro said he tries to educate :-the-public on the regulations-before he enforces them. "If I make a presentation to a group of College Station and Bryan res- idents, within the next week, I will have a dozen phone calls about things that are found," he said. With the information he has gath- ered while a teacher, Barilaro will start his police work. Barilaro wo~ks to keep prohibited items out of the trash. These include appliances and automobile oil, fIlters, I tires and batteries. Instead of putting these items in the gar:bglge, people may bring items to the Brazos Valley Solid Waste Management Agency's March 30 col- lection at the Brazos Center. Through this collection, the agency, Bryan and College Station can recycle just about everything people bring to the collection. Hazardous waste can have many consequences, Barilaro said. "If you add something to a dump- ster which is hazardous waste, that makes everything in the dumpster haz- ardous waste," he said. "A gallon of used motor oil will contaminate 1 mil- lion gallons of water. "We have people all the time who are dumping used motor oil into the gutters and the sewers." , These people have to pay for the cost of cleanup up to 1 million gallons of water, Barilaro said. To keep people from dumping motor oil, Barilarb is telling people why they should not dump motor oil and tQe city has started a used-motor- oil collection center at the public ser- vices building on Cole W. King Street. Behind many stores, gas station and restaurants in College Station peo- 'pJe,~ will fmd overflowing dumpsters, I>a1Tels, stacks of old tire~ and piles of oil fIlters. _ . Barilaro will work with business- es to correct. these problems. This I includes placing large dumpsters Photo and story by Todd Bergmann I behind apartment complexes when stu- dents move in and out. By correcting, the problems in a reasonable time, businesses can avoid paying a fme and cleanup costs, he, said. If city employees clean up a trash problem, they usually do this on week- ends and the city ~ill charge the prop- erty owner time arid - a' half, Barilaro said. Other crimes the trash cop looks for are people putting trash into busi- ness dumpsters and people removing items from recycling containers, trash cans and dumpsters. "This is not only hazardous, it also brings a $150 fIrst offense fme," he said. People can catch hepitatis B from items in dumpsters, Barilaro said. Also, dumpsters can catch on fIre, he said. "A fIre in a petrochemical plant is safer than a dumpster fIre," Barilaro said. FirefIghters know what is in the petrochemical plant and where it is. But they do not know what it is in a dumpster, he said. Although people help clean up the city by throwing trash in business dumpsters, they may force the busi- ness to pay more for trash collection costs, Barilaro said. That is why it it illegal to throw trash in business dumpsters, he said. As part of his job, Barilaro helps businesses reduce their trash collec- tion costs. In some cases, this may result in a decrease in collection fees from $375 a month to $90 a month, he said. In addition to enforcing laws about the wrong kind of trash put in containers and trash put somewhere other than containers, Barilaro enforces"the city's trashcart ordinance. If a trashcart remains in front of his house for more than 12 hours after pickup, Barilaro will put a warning ticket on the cart. If it happens again; he will put an actual ticket on the cart. "My job is not only the enforce- ment of everything," Barilaro said. "I have to know how everything operates and how the whole system works and where it all goes. " This year, word of Barilaro's work has moved beyond the city limits of College Station. Recently, Barilaro spoke at the state solid waste confer- ence in Austin. In April, Barilaro will speak about solid waste in Costa Rica. He will explain the city's solid waste system to the president and other leaders. "The president and most of the major industrialists are all Aggies," he said. I@~I with ing furniture with recycled fence pickets. Age: 45 PETER BARILARO Favorite television show: "Law and Order" Place of birth: Weymouth, Mass Favorite movie: "The Quiet Man" Years In area: 1 0 years Heroes: My dad. , "He was a firefighter. His dedication to public service lives in me." Education: Bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, University ._.of New York; master's degree in military science, United State Military Academy. Favorite actor: John Wayne Favorite book: "A Matter of Degree" Favorite author: John Forsyth Free time activities: Fishing, hunting and mak- Family: Wife, Bonnie Pets: Button, "one 20-year-old, very well traveled and tired cat."