Mahoning County residents should return to their normal recycling habits

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Mahoning County residents should return to their normal recycling habits now that the Allied Waste strike has ended, the county’s interim recycling director said.

Residents should put their recyclable material to the curb on the night before their next scheduled collection, Lou Vega, interim director, said Monday.

Those whose curbside recycling collections were missed last week are encouraged to take their recyclables to one of the county’s 37 recycling drop off centers, he added.

“Services have resumed. Anybody scheduled this week for recycling services should put them (recyclables) out at the normal scheduled date and time,” Vega said.

Residents can expect the twice-a-month curbside collections by Allied Waste to occur on time this week; and drop off site collections by that company should be caught up by Wednesday, Vega said.

County recycling and sheriff’s office crews collected the overflow outside the bins at county drop-off recycling sites during the strike and took the excess to materials- recovery facilities that sort, bundle and distribute recyclable items, he said.

“There was no mess on the ground as of Friday of last week” at drop-off recycling sites, Vega said.

County residents had been asked to remove their recyclables from the curb and return them to their homes during the strike as Allied suspended curbside recycling collection and concentrated on the higher priority of garbage collection.