Meet the people who work at the landfill. They like to . . . "talk trash."
If you're interested in taking a tour of the Landfill or learning more
about solid waste and recycling, please call us at (941) 748-5543. We will be
glad to "talk trash" with you! We are open Monday through Saturday from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
What is solid waste?
Solid waste, also called trash, garbage, refuse and rubbish, is the
stuff we all throw away every day. It is important for us to think about
the garbage that we throw out! Have you ever thought about what happens
to it? After all, all that garbage has to go somewhere after you throw
it in the garbage can. Each day we might throw away:
- household garbage (food waste and household items)
- electronics (e-scrap)
- yard waste (leaves, branches, cuttings from bushes)
- tires
- white goods (refrigerators, washing machine, dryers)
Let's take a look at the landfill
Once the garbage collectors have taken what you have put out by the curb, everything goes to the Landfill. Did you know that not everything is buried at the Landfill?
Some items are kept separate and recycled. White goods are taken to
other locations and taken apart for their metals and are then recycled.
Other items, such as yard waste and tires, are sent to other locations
to be burned for energy. Items you put in your recycle bins are also
collected from your house and sent for recycling.
Fun Facts about Garbage Collection in Manatee County (excluding the cities)
- Garbage is collected from almost 96,000 homes and 5,000 businesses in Manatee County
- 252,000 tons, or 504,000,000 pounds of garbage were buried last year at the Landfill?
- 62,000 was the number of loads of garbage that came to the Landfill last year. That is an average of over 200 loads per day!
- 77,000 tons of material was recycled at the Landfill last year alone. This does not include what you recycle at home!
Talk about a Huge Trash Compactor!
- The average weight of a compactor machine, used at the Landfill, is 80,000 pounds. It is used to compact the garbage!