Spring Thoughts From Refuse/Recycling Department Well it finally seems as if spring has arrived! And it certainly was one of the more challenging winters in some time. This is the time of year where the volume of trash, yard waste and recycle gets extremely heavy. Here are a few disposal tips from the Lakewood Refuse/Recycling Department.

The City of Lakewood’s Mandatory Recycling Ordinance 1777.03 states that all yard waste must be separated from trash. Please keep in mind that yard waste bags picked-up by the refuse workers get turned into mulch and are not put into a landfill with the rest of the trash. Contain grass clippings and leaves in paper yard waste bags, dsolv mesh lawn bags or uncoated cardboard boxes. Obviously, most residents use the basic paper yard waste bags. PLEASE, do not exceed the 50lb in maximum weight. As a matter of fact, 35lb maximum weight makes much more sense to me. Remember, there is no automated truck picking up the yard waste bags. The bags are lifted by the Lakewood refuse worker and it is quite labor intensive. Do not mix dog waste, dirt, sod, stone and especially litter with the yard waste. Do not use refuse carts, garbage cans, plastic bags or plastic or wax coated boxes for yard waste. Residents tend to place grass clippings in standard garbage cans and expect the refuse workers to empty them. In many cases the waste is jammed in the can and the workers have a very tough time emptying the can. This has also led to many back injuries while leaning over the rear of the truck trying to shake the waste out. Cut and tie branches, bushes and shrubs securely into manageable bundles. Use strong twine or rope for bundles: no wire. The maximum bundle size is 4-foot by 18-inches. Stack neatly.

As with all trash, recycling and yard waste DO NOT place on tree lawn before 6:00pm the night before collection day and no later than 6:30am on the collection day. This continues to be a huge problem in Lakewood. While most residents respect the day of collection rules, there is a small percentage of abusers and fill-up our tree lawns with trash on non-collection day. Seeing trash and carts out on the tree lawns is such an eye sore and really makes our beautiful Lakewood streets look awful. We should be better than that Lakewoodites! Please use your recycling cart when ever possible. Break-down all cardboard boxes to maximize space in the cart. The city invested millions of dollars on automated trucks and carts so the retrieving of trash and recycle would be more efficient. Many residents are still not breaking-down their cardboard, therefore filling their recycle cart with one or two boxes and then placing the remainder on the treelawn. Picking-up the loose cardboard is very labor intensive and inefficient. If you have an abundance of cardboard, cut it down and bundle it so it does not blow away and litter our streets. Just a reminder to wash out all aluminum cans, glass bottles, metal cans and plastics before placing in the recycling cart. Recyclable plastics are no longer dictated by the numbers on the material. Plastic tubs, durable plastic(toys, hangers, take-out containers, cups and lids, salad containers) ARE NOT RECYLABLE. NO STYROFOAM. Here are some of the items you should ALWAYS THROW IN THE TRASH: diapers, food remnants, coat hangers, broken glass(window frames), light bulbs, ceramics, PIZZA BOXES, small appliances, napkins, paper towels, tissues and waxed paper. With the arrival of warm weather and spring cleaning, bulk trash on the tree lawns increases ten fold. Please be considerate to the refuse workers and bundle and bag as much as you can. No paint and tires should be on tree lawn. You can dispose of tires(must be off the rim) and oil base paint at the Lakewood Refuse/Recycling Center on Berea Rd. Latex paint must be dried-up with kitty litter or sand. (Not just the paint on the  top of the can, but the entire context must be dried-up.) With many home improvement projects underway in Lakewood, please keep in mind that residents may drop-off building debris, as well as trash, recycling and yard waste at the facility anytime between 8:00am and 2:00pm Mon. thru Fri. and Sat.’s 8:00am to noon. Proof of residency is required. Call 216 252 4322 or go to OneLakewood.com The fine men and women of the Lakewood Refuse/Recycling Center continue to serve our residents in a friendly and professional manner. Your abidance of the rules and regulations of the department is most appreciated. Happy Spring!