Council Bluffs preparing for trash, recycling pickup changes - WOWT
Council Bluffs preparing for trash, recycling pickup changes
With the switch to automation, residents will need new containers.
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (WOWT) - Big garbage trucks with robots will soon roam through the streets of Council Bluffs as the city upgrades to an automated trash and recycling collection system.
Council Bluffs officials have sent out a ton of information about the upcoming change.
Remote-controlled trucks are now an industry standard. Omaha made the same move about three years ago.
“It will be a more efficient program collection will be quicker at the homes. It’s a cleaner look on the streets, reduces blown litter,” said Tony Fiala, Council Bluffs solid waste superintendent. “Worker safety is one of the big keys here. We don’t have as many people out on the ground actually picking up the containers.”
Around 40,000 new 96-gallon carts for garbage and recycling have already been delivered to homes in Council Bluffs.
”That’s 96 gallons of room collected every other week. It’s co-mingled recycling, so they can mix all the plastics together, cardboard, tin, and aluminum cans. We are excluding glass from the program.”
Glass presents a safety concern for workers.
“The glass — they won’t accept glass now, and I kind of understand that because glass breaks and can cause the workers to get cut.”
Homeowner Mary Chambers said she believes keeping the workers on the trucks using a robot arm to pick up garbage will be safer than getting out on the streets to work.
“When you’re driving down Twin City Drive... people they don’t exactly go very slow down here,” she said.
Chambers said she doesn’t think she will need a big cart for garbage. The collection service offers an option for a smaller 48-gallon cart.
“We don’t really have that much trash,” she said. “I don’t want to hold my trash over until I fill up a 96-gallon cart. They gave you a timeline to call in, and I was going to do that today, but we’ll see.”
Garbage will be picked up every week. The new carts can be mixed with household garbage and yard waste — all of that will go to the landfill.
The Council Bluffs solid waste superintendent said keeping the same contractor for the changeover should make for a smooth transition on the streets.
“ Waste Connections has the current contract. They won the new bid for the new contract; so there is great familiarity with the route with the knowledge of the city,” Fiala said.
ABOUT THE CHANGES
Council Bluffs residents can recycle their old garbage cans and recycling containers by dropping them off at the north parking lot of Horseshoe Casino between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. July 10-16.
You can also set the old containers on the curb with your weekly garbage pick up from Aug. 7-18, but those containers left on the curb will go to the landfill for disposal.
More information about the new trash pick-up system — and the new rules you’ll need to follow — can be found at cbrecycles.com.
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