Board president Henry J. Hayes, who is supervisor for District Two, said proposals might be good for the county.

“We sometime have a truck going out with two others out there going down the same road to get to another point,” he said.

Hayes said the county has approximately 3,500 homes that garbage is currently being collected by the individual beats.

Board attorney Ricky Ruffin asked if the request for proposals would require a private company to provide canisters for the residents to use or not.

Clark said the efficient way for the county to handle the matter would be not to require the company to provide a specified canister.

He said the county’s garbage collection can be privatized without the resident changing the manner in which they dispose of their garbage.

“We can put it up in garbage bags or canisters,” he said. “If a resident wants a certain canister, they can go out and buy it.”

Officials said the county currently picks up yard trash and furniture. Supervisors also allow residents to take white goods (appliances) to certain locations for disposal by the county.

Clark told supervisors that the best and lowest bid would be for garbage collections only.

“If you don’t collect it, those things will end up on your roadways,” Ruffin said.

“I would rather them bring it there than for it to end up on the right of way,” District 5 Supervisor Curtis Gray said.

Clark said recycling is also an issue that the board should consider at some later time.

“I know it’s hard to do recycling in a rural county,” he said.

After a lengthy discussion, the group agreed to seek proposals for privatizing countywide garbage collections.

Also Monday, the supervisors opened bids for the sale of a trailer belonging to Beat Four. Of the two bids received, the board accepted the highest bide from James King in the amount of $1,501.