You may have noticed on our website and in the recycle guide the mention of the required 3-5 foot clearance around your provided recycling and/or yard waste containers. Many customers ask, “how important is this distance”? The answer is VERY important. This clearance around your containers allows our drivers to provide the safest and most efficient service possible. Recycling and yard waste services differ from the curbside garbage service in that the service is automated. The required 3-5 foot clearance allows drivers to safely access and empty the large containers and also allows for more space for your commingled recyclables. If the required 3-5 feet clearance is not provided, your recycling or yard waste containers may not be safely accessible and subsequently not serviced. In this case, a driver will leave a tag on your cart explaining why we were unable to service your items. Each of these tags gives specifics of why a container was unable to be serviced on a particular date. If you have received a tag on your recycling or yard waste container and are unsure as to the meaning, please contact our customer service department at 253-414-0345. Stay tuned for more information on how curbside recycling works for YOU!

Effective March 1, 2012 many Auburn residents will be changing their service provider from Murrey’s Disposal to Waste Management due to past annexations in the city which required following certain timelines related to solid waste and recycling. Those residents impacted by this change were mailed a postcard by the city of Auburn. Below is a link to an area map showing a general map of Auburn. Please note that all areas except ordinance area 5932 will be changing service providers effective March 1st, 2012. If you are unsure if your home is included in this annexation and subsequent hauler change, please visit the city of Auburn’s website at www.auburnwa.gov/solidwaste.

Map of Auburn area

For those residential customers affected by this change your last pick up days with Murrey’s Disposal and dates to remove our equipment are detailed below.

Service Type	Date of Last Pick Up	Removal of Equipment Date
Recycling	Friday February 17th, 2012	Friday February 17th, 2012 after service is completed
Garbage	Friday February 24th, 2012	N/A
Yard Waste	Friday February 24th, 2012	Friday February 24th, 2012 after service is completed

Since each customer provides their own garbage can(s) for service, these are yours to keep. The 96-gallon, grey recycling container and 90-gallon blue yard waste container were provided for your use by Murrey’s Disposal. We will be by your home to collect these containers on your scheduled last pick up date after the service is completed. Since the City of Auburn requires that Murrey’s Disposal no longer provides any collections after the month of February, we will collect these containers at this time to allow your new provider, Waste Management to deliver new equipment. For information on new rates, pick up days and details of service, visit www.auburnwa.gov/solidwaste.

Customers with garbage containers at their business will have their equipment removed on their last garbage collection day of February.

As the weather improves from our recent winter storm, we realize many customers are facing the issue of how to dispose of storm debris. For yard waste service that was missed due to inclement weather and hazardous road conditions, customers may set out any additional yard waste items that do not fit in the provided 90-gallon container for curbside service at no additional cost. These additional items must be contained in either a compostable bag or 32-gallon with two handles clearly labeled “yard waste”. These items will be collected on your next regularly scheduled pick up day in 2 weeks.

Unfortunately this is the only way our automated trucks can collect additional yard waste debris. As a result of the design of our automated trucks, we have no way to collect any piles of storm debris that are not either contained in your provided yard waste container with the lid securely closed shut, in a compostable bag, or a labeled 32 gallon can. We apologize for this inconvenience.

All residents can drop off additional yard waste and larger storm debris for FREE at your local transfer station. For a list of sites with hours of operations and more details, please visit http://www.co.pierce.wa.us/pc/abtus/ourorg/pwu/solidwaste/recmenu/Landclearing.htm For more information on missed pick ups due to hazardous weather, please click on “Winter Weather Service” in our announcements section.

Murrey's, American, and DM Disposal are committed to providing the safest possible service for all Customers. If weather or road conditions prevent the collection of garbage, recycling, or yard waste in your area, please remove the containers from the curb at the end of the day.

For Garbage not serviced due to weather or road conditions, you may set out up to twice the regular amount of garbage on your next collection day for no additional charge.

If Recycling is not serviced, additional recycling will be collected the next recycling day in two weeks at no charge. You can set this material out in 32-gallon cans with handles labeled "Recycling" or in boxes placed next to the cart.

If Yard Waste is not serviced due to weather, you may place additional material out on the next yard waste service date in two weeks at no charge in either paper compost bags or 32-gallon cans with handles labeled "Yard Waste". There are no credits for delayed service resulting from weather.

We recognize the inconvenience faced by Customers when there is a weather service delay. We appreciate your understanding as we strive to assure that our Customers, neighbors, and employees are safe when conditions are hazardous.

For all residents serviced by Murrey’s, American, or D.M. Disposal we will accept your discarded tree in two ways. If you have yard waste service, we will pick up our tree for free in your yard waste bin. Please be sure your tree fits in your yard waste container with the lid closed securely. We cannot take any flocked or decorated trees as yard waste. If you do not have yard waste service, set your tree out on your regular scheduled garbage day for disposal. All trees must be cut into 4-foot lengths and each section will be charged an extra unit fee. Residents within the city limits of Puyallup and Milton who are serviced by D.M. Disposal have an organized tree collection schedule that is included in your monthly service cost. Please follow the above directions for limitations on what trees we can accept. Also be sure your tree is cut into sections no larger than 4 feet in length. Please set your tree out for pick up on the following days according to your location and usual collection day:

Puyallup (Within the city limits)	Milton (Within the city limits)
A week Customers Week of January 2nd (South of the tracks) On your regular yard waste pick up day	A week customers Tuesday January 3rd On your regular yard waste pick up day
B week Customers Week of January 9th (North of the tracks) On your regular yard waste pick up day	B Week customers Tuesday January 10th On your regular yard waste pick up day

Our offices are closed and no service is provided on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Years day.

Our Garbage, recycling, and yard waste drivers provide service on all weekday holidays except Thanksgiving (4th Thursday in November), Christmas (December 25th), and New Year’s Day (January 1st).

Regular Collection Day	Thanksgiving Week	Christmas Week	New Year's Week
Monday	No change	No change	No change
Tuesday	No change	No change	No change
Wednesday	No change	No change	No change
Thursday	Friday	No change	No change
Friday	Saturday	No change	No change

Since Christmas and New Years both fall on a Sunday this year, there will be no change in the collection schedule for any residents and all routes will run as usual.

If you have any further questions please feel free to contact us at 1-888-806-7048. Thank you.

If you'd like to make a payment by Visa or MasterCard, you may call our 24-hour Automated Payment Line at 1-866-740-2455.

To process the payment, you will need to have your full account number as well as know the dollar amount you would like to pay.

You can call this toll free number any time of the day, 7 days a week! Payments made by 5pm Pacific Standard Time will be posted to your account the next business day.

Please be advised glass and plastic bags cannot be accepted in any commingled recycle container. Glass is recycled separately for a number of reasons. First, breakage during collection leaves glass shards in paper and degrades the overall quality of the rest of the recyclable material. The glass shards are a contaminant to the other recyclables and lower their value. Secondly, limited marketability means many recyclables may end up in the landfill. Thirdly, glass shards also damage processing equipment and are a hazard to the sorting crew.

Plastic bags also pose a problem for sorting. Plastic bags are not included because they present problems at the recycling center by clogging up the sorting machines. For any further information regarding recycling questions in your area, please visit our related links page or call our customer service line at 1-800-806-7048.