County officials are once again hopeful that trailers could be allowed at certain county transfer stations by early next year.
In April 2021, the Department of Environmental Management announced that all trailers and dump beds would be prohibited at all 22 Big Island transfer stations, citing safety issues presented by inexperienced drivers bringing oversized and cumbersome equipment into small facilities not designed for them.
And although Environmental Management Director Ramzi Mansour said during a County Council committee meeting last November that new rules permitting trailers at certain stations could go into effect by March 2022, that still has yet to happen.
“It’s sad that it’s been more than a year,” said Gary Bricker, an Orchidland resident and trailer owner. “It affects a whole lot of people. We’ve been seeing more trash being dumped on our roads, I think, because of trailers being banned.”
Bricker said that in March he visited a transfer station without disconnecting an empty trailer attached to his vehicle, and shortly thereafter received an official letter informing him that bringing a trailer to a transfer station could incur legal penalties.
Bricker said he was surprised to receive the letter, especially because other rules at transfer stations, such as requirements to secure loads, are selectively enforced.
“Just because some people aren’t able to back up a trailer, we all can’t?” said Bricker, who was once a commercially licensed driver with Young Brothers.
But, Gene Quiamas, environmental compliance specialist for Environmental Management’s Solid Waste Division, said Monday that the county could develop new rules for trailers at transfer stations by next year.
Quiamas said the department currently is assessing the county’s transfer stations to determine which could be modified most easily to allow the use of trailers.
“Our consultant has a draft due to us in two months,” Quiamas said. “After that, after we review it, the county could have a decision ready in three months.”
Solid Waste Director Mike Rivera said the assessment of the transfer stations was delayed because of a lack of funding available at the time. But now, with about $60,000 allocated to the study, Rivera said results should be imminent.
“That’s a lot of money for a study like this,” Rivera said. “So, we should get some good information out of it.”
Rivera said the assessment likely will only focus on the county’s larger transfer stations, explaining that some stations are simply too small to accommodate a trailer no matter how they are arranged.
Quiamas said the ban on trailers was necessary because none of the transfer stations are set up to accommodate them, particularly as trailers become cheaper and more widely used.
“I may consider myself pretty good at backing up with a trailer, but not everyone is,” Quiamas said. “And even if you are able to use one, people are still going to be stuck waiting for you as you back in.”
Mansour said last year that five stations — in Hilo, Pahoa, Waimea, Kealakehe and Waiohinu — are the stations most likely to allow trailers. But Quiamas said that no station can accommodate trailers without some degree of engineering and construction work.
What renovations would be necessary to permit trailers are yet to be determined, but Rivera speculated they could range from simple fixes like new lines painted on the roads to entirely separate areas for trailers to operate. He also said that even if the stations are improved enough to allow trailers, they likely will be subject to size limits.
Until such time, however, no trailers of any size are allowed at any transfer station. Bricker said he and his wife can either haul rubbish in their cars directly, or pay upwards of $90 to hire a hauling service, neither of which are ideal options.
“This trailer is legal, it is certified, I spent $100 to have it registered, and I’m not able to use it,” Bricker said.
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.