MACON, Ga. — Trash pickup has been a major headache for many in Macon-Bibb County in 2021. Over the last few months, we've seen trash piling up for weeks and county leaders collecting trash.
But starting next week, a new company will be picking up your trash. Ryland Environmental will be taking over all solid waste pickup on Jan. 3, 2022. That includes garbage, recycling, yard debris, and bulk waste.
If you live in Macon-Bibb County, there are some things you need to know.
"Every community speaks for itself. If you ride in a community and see a lot of trash, you say, 'Hmm, I don't need to go there. It's an eyesore,'" said Celestine Robinson.
Robinson has lived in Macon her entire life and trash pickup has been a problem in her neighborhood. For more than a month, trash just continued to pile up.
"Recently, the neighbors moved and it was a lot of trash, and no one wanted to come pick it up. It just sat there and it got soggy, soaking wet. All the junk that wasn't out there...they pulled more out there and made it even worse. The mattresses got wet and all of that stuff accumulates bugs," said Robinson.
If you have an old cart, Ryland wants you to place your old, empty cart on the curb on your collection days for Advanced Disposal/Waste Management to pick up.
Trash collection days will not change, except for the southern part of the county, which will be going back to Monday.
"Now that Ryland has taken over, you can see a drastic change. If they come and make their routine pickup, you better believe within a 24-hour period somebody is coming back to pick it up, and that's what we need," said Robinson.
Included in each new Ryland cart will be a flyer to let you know when your collection day will begin in January.
"Basically, all people want is somebody to pick their garbage up. Our aim is to have the best customer service in the business. We want to be best in business by far, and it's not hard to do that when you're responsive to an issue when it comes up," said Ryland managing partner, James Lanier.
And Robinson's happy with the work they're doing so far.
"They need to keep up the good work, keep it up. You started doing good, let's see some consistency," said Robinson.
Recycling and bulk waste collection will happen on alternating weeks.
As for a recycling cart; if you're not on the county's list already, you will need to call the number on your red Ryland bin, or check out Macon-Bibb's website to order a new recycling bin.
For tips and best practices on how items should be placed on the curb click here.
RELATED HEADLINES