Kirstin Davis, Communications Manager, 509.625.7773
Friday, November 10, 2023 at 12:59 p.m.
Curbside yard and food waste customers have until Friday, Dec. 1, to finish their fall yard cleanup before the City of Spokane suspends the collection service for the winter. The optional Clean Green curbside yard and food waste collection service runs from March through November.
“We appreciate the community’s teamwork to get as many leaves out of their yards as quickly as possible heading into winter to assist with keeping the right-of-way and storm drains clear,” says Street Department Director Clint Harris.
Additionally, Thanksgiving feasts can produce significant amounts of food waste. Residents are encouraged to plan ahead to prepare adequately-sized meals to reduce the amount of food that is wasted and suggest guests bring their own “to-go” containers to take leftovers home. If there is food waste, it is best disposed of in green carts with yard waste.
How You Can Help
Stuff Your Green Cart - Residents who subscribe to the optional clean green cart service are urged to put as many leaves and yard waste as possible into their green carts between now and Dec. 1. Never push leaves from the yard into the street. Take the time to make sure there is a clear path for stormwater and snow melt-off to reach the drains in neighborhood streets. The 90-gallon green yard waste cart can be filled with all types of yard waste—leaves, pine needles, grass, pumpkins, pinecones, weeds, vines, thatch, plant trimmings, small amounts of sod, and branches. Please do not overload carts and make sure that the lids are fully closed.
Extra Bag Rules - Plastic bags do not belong in food & yard waste green carts. Green carts with plastic bags are billed as garbage. Paper leaf bags are acceptable in the green cart or left next to the green cart. There is a small fee for disposing of extra paper bags full of leaves, and the leaves are sent to the composting facility. If plastic bags with leaves are left out, there is a larger disposal fee per bag and they go into the trash.
Reduce Food Waste and Put Scraps in Green Carts – Make the most of Thanksgiving leftovers with these tips to reduce food waste. Green cart customers also can dispose of food scraps and food-soiled paper in the carts. Acceptable scraps include meat, poultry, fish, beans, dairy products, fruit, vegetables, breads, grains, pasta, eggshells, nutshells, coffee grounds, tea bags, and leftovers. Acceptable food-soiled papers include greasy pizza boxes, coffee filters, paper towels, paper napkins, uncoated paper plates and cups, paper egg and berry cartons, and paper grocery bags with food scraps.
The cost of the optional collection service will be $20.72 a month in 2024, with no charge when the service is suspended for winter. Customers can add the service by calling the City at 311 inside City boundaries or (509-755-2489).
Even after curbside collection is suspended for winter, recyclers and composters can still recycle yard and food waste at the City’s Waste to Energy (WTE) facility. Clean green materials are accepted year-round at WTE, which is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The minimum charge is $6.47 for clean green material. There is also a self-haul fee of $2.12.
