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RESIDENTIAL GARBAGE
Proper Placement
Proper cart placement is key to automated service. We've created this guide to help you place your garbage cart correctly at the curb for pickup. While taking out the trash is easy, following a few simple steps ensures your waste and recycling are collected efficiently. Our goal is to serve you accurately every week, and proper cart placement helps avoid missed pickups. This guide will ensure your containers are ready for service.
Place your carts at the curb the night before or by 7 a.m. on your service day. Keep them at least five feet away from objects like trees, poles, mailboxes, cars, or fire hydrants so the automated arm can reach them. Maintain five feet of space between your waste and recycling containers.
Please refer to our interactive SERVICE MAP to determine your neighborhood's collection days.
- Do not lean anything against your trash container.
- Avoid placing carts under low-hanging tree branches or other obstacles.
- Place carts within two feet of the curb for easy access.
- Ensure the arrows on the lid face the street, and the handle faces your house. Keep the lid completely closed.
- For reference, placement instructions are also printed on your cart lid.
Did you know?
- Loose paper or small debris should be bagged to prevent scattering during automated collection.
- Do not overload your cart or stack items on top - the lid must close completely. Overflowing carts may not be collected.
- Extra bags left on the ground will not be picked up during regular service. Hold onto them for your scheduled bulky collection day.
- Only city City-issued carts will be serviced.
- Cleanliness of the cart is your responsibility.
- Carts cannot be modified in any way.
What is a Cubic Yard?
Holiday Schedule
Bulk items should be placed curbside no later than 7 a.m. on the day of bulk collection service, but no earlier than 6 p.m. the night before collection. To ensure the garbage and recycling carts can still be collected, the bulk waste pile should have a clearance of five (5) feet on each side. Residents are asked to avoid placing bulk items near obstructions such as trees, power lines, mailboxes, or automobiles.
What is Bulk Waste?
Bulky waste includes household items that are too large to fit in your trash container. Examples include discarded furniture, stoves, mattresses, wood, swing sets, and other household appliances.
Bulk Trash Guidelines
- Piles are not to exceed two cubic yards per residence per week and must be stacked neatly.
- Is there a limit? Yes, nonconforming trash collection will be subject to a fee.
- Mirrors, glass, glass tabletops, windowpanes, and plate glass (Items should be safely placed in a rigid container to facilitate safe collection.)
- Waste placed curbside must adjoin the property that generated the materials.
- All doors should be removed from the refrigerator, washer, dryer, stove, etc., before placing curbside for collection.
- Hazardous materials will not be accepted. Additionally, collection crews will not move hazardous items out of the way to pick up acceptable items.
- It is recommended that rugs, carpets, and padding be rolled and securely tied.
- Items too large or heavy to safely load will not be collected.
Bulk Waste Rate Non-containerized | Greater than 2cy = $10
Bulky item volumes exceeding 2 cubic yards weekly will result in a $10 per cubic yard fee to the resident, billed and collected by Fort Pierce Utilities Authority FPUA.
Unacceptable Waste
- Contractor-generated materials
- Debris of any type on vacant lots.
- For health, regulatory, and safety reasons, the city will not accept construction, remodeling or demolition debris, including all concrete materials and bricks, tiles, rocks, dirt, sand, soil, or brickwork; automobile bodies or parts, engines, transmissions, batteries, or other parts; horticultural materials from commercial lawn/yard services or other commercial operations.
Yard Waste Guidelines
Helpful Resources Brochure
CART IT Leaves, twigs, grass clippings, and other small pieces of yard waste should be placed in the city-issued BLACK YARD WASTE CART.
- (1) 4 cubic yards per residence, per week.
- Brush and tree limbs must be neatly stacked, and singular items not to exceed 50lb. Approximately 6'x4'x4' pile.
- Nonconforming trash collection will be subject to a fee.
- Branches over 6" in diameter must be cut into 6' lengths.
Greater Than 4 Yards | $6cy
Bulky item volumes exceeding 4 cubic yards weekly will result in a $6 per cubic yard fee to the resident, billed and collected by Fort Pierce Utilities Authority FPUA.
NOTE:
Please do not permit commercial lawn maintenance companies, professional tree trimmers or landscapers to leave yard waste curbside. As per City Ordinance 16-27:5, these professionals MUST lawfully haul away any debris they generate. The COFP is NOT responsible to collect contractor-generated material.
YARD WASTE refers to grass, weeds, leaves, trees and shrubbery, and other similar materials which are separated from other solid waste. Do not mix stained, painted, or treated wood with yard waste.
Unacceptable Waste
- Automobile parts, bodies, doors, driver trains, motorcycles or parts, lawnmowers or parts, and other similar materials.
- Bricks, cinder blocks, rocks, concrete, glass, dirt, sand, sod, drywall, tile, grout, construction debris.
- Commercial waste and contractor-generated waste. Debris from work performed by anyone other than the resident.
- Private landscapers must dispose of all debris generated by their work. It is the homeowner's responsibility to ensure that the landscaper removes their debris. Homeowners will be charged for any debris left by a landscaper.
- Debris of any type on vacant lots
- Limbs and other woody waste longer than 6 feet in length and larger than 6 inches in diameter.
- Paint or hazardous waste