Recycle Your Christmas Tree in Santee

Help divert green waste from the landfill by recycling your Christmas tree at the end of the season.

 

Trees will be picked up for recycling the first two weeks following Christmas through Jan. 11, 2016.

Residents with curbside collection can recycle their Christmas trees by placing the trees in their yard waste bins on their regular pick-up day. Trees must be cut into maximum four-foot sections and must fit into the green yard waste container. Ornaments, tinsel and tree stands must be removed before being recycling.

Flocked trees cannot be recycled, but will be collected if cut into four-foot sections and placed into the regular trash cart.

Santee residents without curbside collection, primarily those living in apartment complexes, can drop off trees, from Dec. 26th through Jan. 11, 2016, at the Waste Management Recycle Center in El Cajon, located at 925 O’Connor Street, one block south of the West Bradley Avenue and Johnson Avenue intersection. The recycling center will be open 7:00am to 7:00pm Monday through Friday, and 7:00am to 12:00pm on Saturday.

For more information contact Senior Management Analyst Ed Ruiz at (619) 258-4100 ext. 128.

 

Santee's Commercial Recycling Champions

The city and Waste Management Inc. honored GTM Discount General Stores and Meadowbrook Mobile Home Estates with the inaugural Commercial Recycling Champions Award at the April 22 City Council meeting.

The award acknowledges one commercial customer and one multi-family community for exemplary efforts in implementing recycling services at each of their properties.

GTM Discount General Stores was honored for recycling more than 50 percent of its monthly 40 cubic yards of waste and for not allowing non-recyclable materials to get into its recycling dumpsters.

Meadowbrook Mobile Home Estates, which has 338 units, recycles more than 1,700 pounds of recyclable materials annually. They also encourage residents to recycle by publicizing their goal to increase recycling and by educating residents with clear instructions on which materials are recyclable.

 

Go Green With Your Christmas Tree

Do your part to divert green waste from the landfill by recycling your Christmas tree.

It’s easy. Waste Management will pick up trees during residents’ normally scheduled collection day beginning Friday, Dec. 26, 2014 through Friday, Jan. 9, 2015.

Residents with curbside collection can recycle their Christmas trees by placing the trees in their yard waste (green) bins on their regular pick-up day. Trees must be cut into 4-ft sections and must fit into yard waste container. Ornaments, tinsel and tree stands must be removed before being recycling.

Flocked trees cannot be recycled, but will be collected if cut into four-foot sections and placed into the regular (gray or black) trash cart.

Santee residents without curbside collection, such those living in apartment complexes, can drop off trees from Dec. 26th through Jan. 9, 2014, at the Waste Management Recycle Center in El Cajon.  It’s located at 925 O’Connor Street, one block south of the West Bradley Avenue and Johnson Avenue intersection. There is no disposal fee. The recycling center will be open 7:00am to 7:00pm Monday through Friday, and 7:00am to 12:00pm on Saturday.

For more information contact Ed Ruiz, at (619) 258-4100 ext. 128.

 

Recycle your Christmas Tree

Help divert green waste from the landfill by recycling your Christmas tree at the end of the season:  Trees will be picked up for recycling the first two weeks following Christmas through Jan. 10, 2014.

Residents with curbside collection can recycle their Christmas trees by placing the trees in their yard waste bins on their regular pick-up day. Trees must be cut into 4-ft sections and must fit into yard waste container. Ornaments, tinsel and tree stands must be removed before being recycling.

 Flocked trees cannot be recycled, but will be collected if cut into four-foot sections and placed into the regular trash cart.

Santee residents without curbside collection such as apartment complexes can drop off trees, from Dec. 26th through Jan. 10, 2014, at the Waste Management Recycle Center in El Cajon, located at 925 O’Connor Street, one block south of the West Bradley Avenue and Johnson Avenue intersection. The recycling center will be open 7:00am to 7:00pm Monday through Friday, and 7:00am to 12:00pm on Saturday.

For more information contact Ed Ruiz, at (619) 258-4100 ext. 128.

 

 

Businesses and Apartments Can Keep Santee Green by Recycling

Recycling coordinator Ed Ruiz
 

Business owners and those who manage multi-family housing such as apartments have been required to participate in California’s mandatory commercial recycling program since July 2012.

To comply with state law, businesses that generate at least 4 cubic yards of solid waste per week and multi-family housing of five units or more must arrange for recycling services.

Businesses and multi-family housing complexes in Santee can comply by choosing any of the following options:

• Arrange for the pickup of recyclable materials with Waste Management Inc., the city’s franchise trash hauler;

• Arrange for the pickup of recyclable materials by a non-franchise hauler who must provide the service at no cost to the property owner;

• Apply for an exemption at Santee City Hall and take responsibility for hauling your recyclable waste to a recycle center.

Owners of commercial businesses and managers of multi-family housing complexes may require their tenants to source separate their recyclable materials to aid in compliance with state law.

More information is available by contacting City of Santee Recycling Coordinator Ed Ruiz at (619) 258-4100 ext. 128.

Help Santee Recycle

Chances are there is something in your garbage can that isn't really garbage. More than half of what the typical consumer throws away can be recycled, reused or converted into new products.

Senior Analyst Ed Ruiz likes to recycle 

Waste prevention and recycling programs have been in place since 1989, when the state asked local governments to reduce half of the waste stream going to landfills.  Santee exceeded that diversion requirement, as did the rest of the state, which achieved an overall recycling rate of 58 percent.

Last year, the state raised the bar by asking cities to divert at least 75 percent of their waste from landfills by 2020.

To meet the new goal, Santee needs residents and businesses to be more vigilant when it comes to recycling.

Here’s what you can do: Take another look at your trash.  Are there items that can be recycled?  If so, it's time to separate them.

Yard waste, which makes up a large part of California's waste stream, can be recycled in your own backyard through mulching and composting. In addition to saving landfill space, you'll save on buying fertilizer.  Placing vegetable food scraps in a compost bin can also reduce your volume of garbage.

Make recycling a habit at home and at work.  To learn more about what can be recycled, call Waste Management Inc. at (619) 596-5100 or Santee City Hall at (619) 258-4100 Ext. 128.

Santee Launches Recycling Rewards Program

Senior Management Analyst Ed Ruiz

Starting today, Santee residents can earn discounts at nearly 3,000 businesses or  redeem points for merchandise by participating in a new curbside recycling  rewards program.

The first step is for residents of single-family homes to sign up online at Recyclebank.com/wm
Apartment residents are not eligible because they do not use curbside trash service.

Residents can earn reward points for placing paper, cardboard, cans, aluminum and other recyclable materials in the blue cart provided to most households by Waste Management.

Reward points will be awarded based on the aggregate weight of recyclable materials collected from each neighborhood.

“The point of this program is to encourage more residents to recycle by providing them with money saving incentives,” said Santee Senior Management Analyst Ed Ruiz, who oversees the city’s recycling program.

“Regardless of any rewards, recycling is simply a good thing for our community and for our planet,” Ruiz said.  "Santee is proud to be the first city in San Diego County to launch this program."

Reward points can be used for groceries, merchandise and discounts from hundreds of national retailers as well as local businesses.

More information about the program is available online at www.recyclebank.com/wm
or by phone at 1-888-727-2978.

Recycle your Christmas Tree

Help divert green waste from the landfill by recycling your Christmas tree.

Waste Management Inc. will pick up natural trees placed in your curbside green waste cart the first two regular trash collection days that fall between Dec. 26  and Jan. 7.

Residents with curbside collection can recycle their Christmas trees by:

A.   Removing ornaments, tinsel and tree stands; and

B.   Cutting them into 4-foot sections and placing them into their green waste carts on their regular pick-up day.

Flocked trees cannot be recycled, but will be collected if they are cut into 4-foot sections and placed into the regular trash cart.

Residents of apartment complexes or others without curbside trash service can drop off their trees from Dec. 26th through Jan. 7th, 2013, at the Waste Management Recycle Center in El Cajon.

The recycle center is at 925 O’Connor Street, one block south of the West Bradley Avenue and Johnson Avenue intersection.  It will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7 a.m. to noon on Saturday.

For more information contact Ed Ruiz at the city of Santee Community Services Department, (619) 258-4100 ext. 128

New Recycling Requirements for Businesses, Multi-unit Housing

Since 2004, the city of Santee has exceeded its goal to recycle at least 50 percent of its solid waste, thanks to an aggressive recycling program and cooperation from local residents.

In 2011, Santee achieved a disposal rate of 4.5 pounds per person per day, exceeding the state’s mandatory goal of no more than 6.5 pounds of solid waste per person per day.

That means Santee diverted 65 percent of it recyclable solid waste, preventing that material from being taken to a landfill and exceeding the state’s minimum requirement by 15 percent.

But a new state law (Assembly Bill 341) requires communities to increase recycling.
Beginning July 1, commercial businesses that dispose of at least 4 yards of waste per week and multi-family complexes of five or more units are required to separate recyclables from their trash.

For more information on this new law, contact the city at (619) 258-4100 ext. 128 or via email at eruiz@ci.santee.ca.us or Waste Management Inc. at (619) 596-5100.