Prized
pickles

Who wouldn’t want a national award from the North American Hazardous Materials Management Association on their record of achievements? So what if it wasn’t for Outstanding Policy Advancement. Monroe County, Indiana’s Solid Waste Management District, is still grateful to have received this year’s Pickled Skunk Brain Award for most unusual item received by a collection service.

When the HAZMAT division first got the item in May, they knew it was more than just another jar of formaldehyde and severed fingertips. Used as evidence against a lumber producer by a woman whose fingertips had to be amputated after handling arsenic-treated wood, the jar was sent to Monroe County for disposal. And dispose of it they did, but not before submitting it for the NAHMMA annual awards.

According to director Scott Morgan, the district knew right away they had a winner. “I’ve been here eight years,” Morgan said, “and it’s the most bizarre thing I’ve ever come across.” :