December 21, 2007

"If you have regular curbside solid waste collection, you may put your used Christmas tree out on the day of your regular garbage pickup from January 1 through January 11, 2008, and a separate truck will come by for the tree," said Barry Edwards, Catawba County's Director of Utilities and Engineering. “Since GDS will collect trees at the curbside from January 1 through 11, residents should have two opportunities for GDS to pick up trees on their regularly scheduled garbage pick-up day.”

Christmas trees and other natural decorations will only be accepted at convenience centers between December 26, 2007 and January 31, 2008. Some municipalities in Catawba County are again handling tree pickup separately within their boundaries, so residents of municipalities should check with the government office in their city or town to be sure of the schedule and procedure they should use.

"Since January 1, 1993, it is illegal under North Carolina law to dispose of yard waste in a sanitary landfill," Edwards said. "Christmas trees are defined as 'yard waste', so they may not be disposed of in regular trash containers at any of the County's convenience centers. We want to help our customers during this time of year, so GDS will provide a separate container at each convenience center for disposal of Christmas trees from December 26, 2007 until January 31, 2008. We accept natural Christmas trees at our Construction & Demolition (C&D) Landfill site, located at the Blackburn Landfill, all year".

All collected trees are recycled to make compost and mulch. The mulch and compost is available to Catawba County citizens at the C&D site. Mulch is available for $5 for a 1.5 yard load, or $6 for a 2.5 yard load, and compost is available for $12 for a 1.5 yard load, or $15 for a 2.5 yard load, as long as supplies last," Edwards added.

The County’s five Convenience Centers are located on Rocky Ford Road off Highway 10 west of Newton (across from the Blackburn Landfill); on Lookout Dam Road in the Oxford Community; on Sherrills Ford Road; at the now closed Newton Landfill on Bethany Church Road; and in the Cooksville Community on Rhoney Farm Road. The Cooksville Center is open on Fridays and Saturdays from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., The Newton Center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. 6 p.m. The Blackburn Convenience Center is open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. The Oxford and Sherrills Ford Centers operate Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. 6 p.m.

The Blackburn Sanitary Landfill will be closed on Monday, December 24 and Tuesday, December 25, 2007. The Blackburn Construction and Demolition Landfill will be closed from Monday, December 24 through Wednesday, December 26, 2007. All five convenience centers will be closed on Tuesday, December 25, 2007.

For more information on disposal of Christmas trees or landfill operations, you may contact the Catawba County Utilities and Engineering Department at 828-465-8261 when that office re-opens after the holiday break, on Thursday, December 27th.