Some trash is no one's treasure
While a regular trash pick-up day nets three loads, the Street Department on Monday collected eleven loads, the beginning of a two-week heavy pick-up period. Imagine the guys' 5,000 stops this week, gathering treasures like these:
Heavy trash pick-up offers Shelbyville residents a chance to rid yards, sheds, homes and garages of accumulating items. But a cruise down any city street reveals apparent abuse of the service. "Although it is heavy clean up and most rules do not apply, we still need residents to not throw loose trash all over the ground," Shelbyville Street Commissioner Jennifer Jones said. "Putting it out in this manner creates a mess in a heavy wind, storm or rains." The conundrum begs the question: what opportunities exist throughout the year to prevent Shelbyville from looking like a two-week Katrina reenactment, complete with zombie-like figures rifling through items in your driveway? I pondered this issue early Tuesday morning while following a crew and observing the truck swallow couches.
If you were too busy moving a small rain forests' worth of tree limbs to the curb to make it to the fairgrounds last Saturday, the Shelby County Recycling District offers several more Clean Shelby Days throughout the county this year. In fact, there’s another one this Saturday in Morristown.
While hauling out appliance cardboard last night, my six-year-old daughter asked, “Couldn’t we recycle this?” She’s right. You can recycle 24/7 for free at ten locations across the county. No need to recreate a Garbage Pail kids art installation on the curb. Participating in the weekly recycling program also helps alleviate backlog.
Even metal items can be recycled (Pettit’s Recycling Center) and cardboard, glass, and other recyclables can be dropped off at the Shelby County Transfer Station on N. Michigan Road for no fee.
If it must go to heavy trash pick-up, Jones reminds residents to separate trash by materials. “Keep all wood items in a pile and trash bags separate,” she said. We look forward to checking in with the Street Department at the next pick-up in October for more trash talk and to gauge any signs of improvement.