New trash collection sites open in Nelson

By Erin McGrath

Published: May 15, 2008

Wearing a black smock, blue shirt and jeans, Donna Adams waves and greets the Nelson residents who drive into the new collection site in Shipman.

“I like meeting the people,” Adams said. “And I like what it’s doing for the county. Most of them are all so nice and so happy to see this site here.”

Adams currently works one day a week at the Shipman collection site, located along Virginia 56. She is one of several employees that run the site, along with the other two gated and manned collection sites in Rockfish and Massie’s Mill.

“We inform everybody what the rules are,” Adams said. “We make sure they have a sticker, that they’re from Nelson.”

Adams said the employees also make sure no commercial waste is dumped at the sites.

Along with 10-ton compactors for residential trash, the collection sites also have compactors to recycle corrugated cardboard and containers to recycle paper, plastic containers and metal food cans.

The Shipman, Massie’s Mill and Rockfish collection sites are open seven days a week from 7 a.m. til 7 p.m.

Adams said the busiest days of the week in Shipman are Saturdays and Sundays because most people are off of work then.

“I did work last Saturday (May 3) and it about killed me,” she said.

The Shipman collection site along Virginia 56 replaced the unmanned open-top container collection site in Shipman that sat near railroad tracks.

That site was shut down, but the other open-top container sites around the county in Faber, Schuyler, Montebello, Gladstone, Wintergarden and Blackrock are all still operational.