Manatee County sets Oct. 30 debris deadline

If you’ve still got Irma debris in your yard, make sure it’s placed at the curb by Oct. 30.

Manatee County announced the deadline for debris placement in uncollected areas Tuesday afternoon. The county says it has more trucks working than before and the collection process is speeding up. However, the deadline is meant to ensure that residents are placing their debris where workers can get it.

As of Tuesday, Manatee County has collected about 286,000 cubic yards of debris, or about 25 percent of what Irma created.

“Most residents have had their storm-related debris at the curb for some time, but there are still some that are working to get those last fallen trees cut up and moved to the curb,” said Manatee County Utilities Director Mike Gore. “This lets them know how much time they have left.”

However, the county is urging residents to finally place their debris at the curb so that workers have an idea of what areas to tackle next. Amy Pilson, public affairs liaison director for the Manatee County utilities department, said that collection workers move from one high-debris area to another and having all the debris at the street allows them to better plan their movements.

But Pilson said that another reason for the deadline is to prevent people from taking advantage of the debris pickup service.

“We needed to have a cutoff time so that people didn’t believe that they would be able to continually put things out there,” she said.

Manatee County officials still don’t know when they’ll finish the debris collection process because resources tend to fluctuate, said Pilson.

Ever since Irma, many residents have had issues with piles of storm debris being left in their yard while workers ride by. The most common reason for this occurrence is that the county may not enter private property to retrieve debris.

Manatee residents may still bring vegetative storm debris and yard waste to the Lena Road Landfill for free through Oct. 29, but tipping fees will be reinstated the next day.

According to county government, pick-up times on public and private roads may differ because separate trucks are being used to complete those tasks.

Those with further questions or concerns may visit www.mymanatee.org/utilities or call (941) 792-8811.

This story was originally published October 24, 2017 at 2:44 PM with the headline "Manatee County sets Oct. 30 debris deadline."