A Love Letter to Our Garbage Men…
Every once in awhile, a public agency gets it right, and the collective agency at Stopwaste.org of Alameda County Waste Management Authority and Alameda County Source Reduction and Recycling Board is a great example of this. Please forgive my public love letter to my garbage collection guys and gals.
As part of the Garage Cleanup 2008 Project: Phase I, Merideth and I took four years’ worth of toxic materials (paint, wood stripper chemicals, what have you) over to the Household Hazardous Waste Center on Saturday, and it was a fantastic facility. We just loaded up the back of the truck (oh, how we love the truck), and went through a drive-through where hazmat-suited men emptied everything out and sent us on our way. We didn’t even have to get out of the cab. The best part is that we can be sure that all of those chemicals will be disposed of properly and reused when they can.
I know that when hazardous disposal isn’t easy, people take shortcuts, so I appreciate that the folks at Stopwaste.org have created such a streamlined process. I could actually go on and on about how much I love this agency and how thoughtful their weekly collection process has made me about what I throw away, but let’s just leave it at this: I hope other U.S. cities/counties look toward Alameda County as a shining (not literally, as it’s waste disposal and all) example.
More to come this week that isn’t about garbage when I remember to download the pictures.
Fred@OneProjectCloser said,
March 3, 2008 @ 3:25 pm
It’s nice to recognize folks for doing their job well. Your esp. right in the case of garbage men who tend to go unrecognized and unthanked most of the time — yet it is a job vital to our American way of life.
hellohahanarf said,
March 3, 2008 @ 8:57 pm
way cool to sing their praises! so much on the web is pure rant. this was great to read.
Lynn said,
March 4, 2008 @ 10:31 am
I agree w/hellohahanarf. Well Said! I just wish our garbage disposal folks here in the South would do something comparable. We have one time a year when we can dispose of hazardous stuff (at least that I’ve ever heard of) and if you miss that day, well tough luck and save it until next year. Cudos to California!
Beth said,
March 4, 2008 @ 1:54 pm
Fred – Thanks! Garbage removal is pretty mind-boggling if you think about the sheer amount of mass that has to be moved from one location to another.
hellohahanarf – Well thank you!
Lynn – Well, at least you do get that one day…but what if you’re on vacation? Or have a lunch date?
Lisa said,
March 4, 2008 @ 4:35 pm
In suburbia we call as many times a year as we would like and they come to our house to pick up any haz mat. We can call up to three times a year for large trash pick up (they came last week for our entire old fence). It is a great program for us and a great program for them- dealing with all these ligh bulbs is going to be a big problem if something isn’t put in place everywhere. Having trash pick up also saves on having a code enforcement officer warning everyone to clean up. I’m glad the government served you well. Now, if only we can get those lanes restriped into the Fastrak lanes on the bridge (and by fixed I mean one lane painted “Beth’s Lane”)!
Beth said,
March 5, 2008 @ 2:25 pm
Lisa – Oh, suburbia. How everything’s all convenient. I must console myself by eating at a non-chain restaurant.
Oh, and when IS my Fastrak lane going in?