City of Charlotte Solid Waste Services CNG garbage truck.
City of Charlotte Solid Waste Services will collect garbage, recycling, yard waste and bulky items on Monday, May 28, 2018.
How to Prepare For Collection ::
Do not overfill carts or place items outside of the cart. Items outside the rollout carts will not be collected.
Please ensure that the lid on your garbage and recycling rollout carts are down.
Please place the cart within six feet of the curb and with the handle facing toward your property. Do not block the sidewalk.
Please allow three feet of space between collection items and other obstacles such as mailboxes, phone poles and vehicles.
Place the cart at the curb no later than 6:00 am on your scheduled collection day.
Place the cart at the curb no sooner than the day before collection. The cart must be removed from the curb by midnight on the day of collection. A minimum $150 citation may be issued if you place the cart at the curb sooner than the day before collection or leave it at the curb past midnight on your collection day.
All recyclables should be loose in the cart. Recyclables should not be bagged.
Spring 2018 Food Too Good To Waste Challenge participant, Romana Bigeagle, excited about winning an IKEA gift card.
The Spring 2018 Food Too Good To Waste Challenge was a huge success! The challenge was adapted from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The six-week challenge asks participants to reduce the amount of food waste in their garbage.
Why?
The EPA estimates that food waste is the number one item in garbage AND food waste mixed with all the other items we throw away creates methane gas that is emitted from landfills. This methane gas has a negative impact on our health and the environment as it heats the Earth’s atmosphere. In an effort to better their health - and show a little love to Mother Nature - the participants took a food shopping, prep and storage class then::
Separated their food waste from the rest of their garbage.
Weighed both their food waste and regular garbage each week.
Recorded their food and garbage weights and documented their waste strategies in the Food Too Good To Waste app.
Shared their experiences on Facebook.
Tracked their progress weekly, getting results on their waste and carbon footprint reductions and money saved through waste reduction. They were also able to see how they compared with others in the Challenge
The results?
The overall Challenge winner, Vanessa Stevenson reduced 58% of her food waste or 37 pounds; that’s a 153 percent increase in the amount of waste reduced from the winner of the 2017 Challenge!
She was also able to save $313.77 in groceries over the six-weeks, which is the equivalent of 45 meals.
Another participant used all 51 of the waste reduction strategies throughout the challenge
What were some winning strategies?
According to second place winner, Adalee Gellar, the following waste reduction strategies helped her significantly reduce her household waste ::
Composting all food scraps.
Meal planning
Recycling
Sharing leftovers with neighbors and pets.
Shopping at farmers markets to reduce packaging waste.
Using all reusable items including cloth towels instead of paper towels
A majority of participants said they will participate in the next challenge because they truly enjoyed and benefitted from participating. Join them by registering for the next Food Too Good To Waste Challenge starting this fall.
6 Tips on How To Become A Minimalist
Become a minimalist by using these 7 helpful tips below.
Spring means out with the old and in with new. Revitalize your living spaces by becoming a minimalist. Minimalist get rid of all the items they don't need, no longer use or that no longer serves a purpose to them. The goal is to become organized, cleaner and happier. Here are 7 tips to help ease the transition from consumer to minimalist. These tips are courtesy of Makespace.
Evaluate your space and examine your priorities. Figure out what you'd like to keep and what you know you can get rid of. Ask yourself, when is the last time you've worn or used the item? Visualize what your space can look like once you do organize.
Declutter every area of your home. Clutter can cause stress and anxiety. It has been proven that less clutter in person's equals greater happiness and sense of freedom. Start simple and get rid of any duplicate items you own. Next, get rid of everything you don’t use or see on a regular basis.
Think before you buy new things. Do you really need it or will just take up space?Consider upcycling the items that you already have or getting them altered. If you decide that you truly need a new item, make sure you use the next tip.
Buy high quality items. Don't buy items that you know won't last long. That is just a waste of your money and time, because you'll keep having to buy the same item over again. Buy high quality items that will last you years.
Be grateful for what you have. Focus on what you have and not what you don't. Gratitude is a great value to practice. The desire to have more will disappear once you realize how much you actually have.
Purge on a regular basis. If you do something gradually, it no longer becomes overwhelming. Get rid of items on a regular basis so your living spaces stay clean and organized.
Let go of guilt. Don't feel bad for donating that sweater you got as a gift, if you've never worn it. Fell good about providing others with items that they may really need. Donating items is ALWAYS better than throwing them away.
Interested in learning more about becoming a minimalist? A brave Solid Waste Service employee decided to take the challenge, and is documenting her experience. Follow Solid Waste Services on Facebook to get updates about their progress.
Propane Tank Advisory From Mecklenburg County Solid Waste
Please dispose of your propane tanks the correct way by returning them to the four full service recycling centers.
Camping is in season, but please refrain from recycling those propane or camp-gas cylinders in your curbside recycling. Yes, these cylinders are metal, however, the explosive gas that remains in the can will explode during the recycling process.
So, how do you get rid of them?
Please bring these cylinders to one of Mecklenburg County’s Full Service Recycling and Disposal Centers, where they can be processed safely. There have been several fires at the Materials Recycling Facility recently related to small camping propane cylinders.
Please help protect workers involved in recycling by disposing of these items correctly.
