If you are trying to recycle your garden hose or old gutters, think again.
Those items should NOT be put in your Team Waste recycling container, said Emily Harrell, Lakeland city engineer.
She said a staff member for the City has been inspecting recycling bins lately and found an odd assortment of items which are trash or contenders for the City bulk pick up service.
Mrs. Harrell said the inspection reveals tree limbs, old gutters, a wooden bench, toys, car parts, garden hose and general trash.
She suggests reading the Republic Services website for recycling education. “I believe it would be really helpful for residents who have questions,” she said.
https://recyclingsimplified.com/
Team Waste, who picks up recycling (and trash and yard waste) within Lakeland is only the hauler, said Mrs. Harrell. “Memphis Recycling is owned by Republic. They take all the recyclables and process them.”
She added, “All of these items should be in trash or bulk pickup.”
Earlier this month, the City initiated a “hang tag program” as an initiative to inspect recycling bins and reduce costly contaminated bins. Mrs. Harrell said, ““If the bin contains items which are not acceptable, a yellow hang tag will be placed on the bin identifying the unacceptable item(s). Team Waste will not collect the bin until the item is removed.”
In April, Memphis Recycling began charging a fee of $150 for every contaminated ton, according to Alejandra Arriaga, Lakeland staff engineer. The City of Lakeland’s processing fee for “clean” recyclables is $117.30 per ton, so for a contaminated load the City is charged a total of $267.30 per ton. For the months of April and May, the City of Lakeland was charged $6,864 in just contaminations fees.
… Photos courtesy of City Hall
