Current Events

Solid Waste District of St. Joseph County
Office has Moved to
929 Lincolnway East, Suite 100
South Bend, IN 46601-3767

The new office of the Solid Waste Management District of St. Joseph County is located at 929 Lincolnway East, Suite 100 as of August 5th, 2010. The building is located at the junction of Lincolnway East and E. Sample / S. Eddy Street. The building also houses James Childs Architects which is shown on the picture below on the right. The entrance driveway into the building is located on the Southside of the building and must be entering from S. Eddy Street heading west just before the stoplight on Lincolnway East.

To get to our office, you must continue driving through the parking lot to the North side parking lot for the building. You can park there as shown in the center picture below. To access our office, go down to the lower door as shown in the picture on the left. There will be signs directing you to our office.

Learn more about our OutReach Programs

We can provide various types of outreach activities to provide an organization or school more information about recycling activities. You can learn more by click here .

Free Electronics Disposal

Recently, there has been a change in our Electronics Disposal program. They can be disposed of free! Learn more by clicking here .

Annual Application for Curbside Recycling Program Consideration

If there are circumstances where your residence is not occupied or will become unoccupied for a temporary period (3 months) or a longer-term ( 6 months), you can submit an application to the District to request an exception from the residential curbside program for these periods. Based upon the review of your request, the District will notify you of the decision made about your request.

You must complete the Annual Application request. To do so, please download the attached Annual Application form and submit the application to the District for review.

Bins used in 2010

Our recycling contract which began in January 2009 with Borden Waste-Away Service uses a 96-gallon or 35-gallon recycling bins for the elderly who meet a certain criteria.

If you have not received your Borden open-top container, please make request for a new bin (shown below), contact the District at (574) 235-9971 or call Borden Waste-Away Service at (800) 683-6801.

For old recycling bins, you have three options:

1. Keep your bin for your own personal use     OR
2. You can drop your bin to either of the following locations:

• The District Office is located on 621 E. Jefferson Street, South Bend till 8/3/2010 and will move to 929 Lincolnway East, Suite 100 on 8/5/2010 OR
• Our Household Hazardous Waste Site at 1105 East 5th Street, Mishawaka

St. Joseph County Recycling -- Additional Services

Second Recycling Cart

Second cars are available for residents who consistently have more recyclables that will not fit into the cart provided. Borden will deliver and then, service a second recycling cart every-other week along side your normal cart service.

The second cart is billed directly from Borden on a yearly basis. The cost is only $ 2.00 per month or $ 24.00 per year.

Blue Bag Service

Blue Bag Service is available for those who occasionally have extra recycling that does not fit inside the cart provided. Any recyclables placed into the Blud Bags(s) and set next to the cart will be removed on the regular service day.

A box of Blue Bags costs $ 25.00 for a box of 25 and is delivered to your door.

Carry-Out Service

Carry-Out Service is available for those who would like to have their recycling cart/bags picked up at their chome, dumped, and returned.. This service is best for those who are unable to get their trash cart or bags to the curb for curbside pick-up.

For those who qualify as "Hardship", this is a free service. Others will be billed $ 33.75 quarterly (Every 3 months).

Impact of Mercury on Environment

Mercury containing devices are harmful to the environment. Old household thermostats and fluorescent bulbs, both containing mercury, can be recycled at the Household Hazardous Waste Center in Mishawaka. Bulbs will be accepted on Tuesday or Thursdays between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. and they must be unbroken and properly packed in boxes made for fluorescent bulbs, when required.

We are recommending that you please follow the instructions shown on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) web site. It provides instructions on how to handle and dispose of mercury related products. Specifically, you can take the mercury-containing item to our Hoursehold Hazardous Waste (HHW) site in Mishawaka for proper disposal.

Mercury is used in a variety of manufacturing processes and products such as thermometers and compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. If you improperly dispose of products with mercury in them, they may break and release mercury vapors which are harmful to human and ecological health.

If you have a friend or associate that operates a business, remind them that the district will accept old thermostats and fluorescent lamps free of charge. Together we can prevent further damage to our waterways and aquatic life by safely disposing and recycling of these items at a mercury collection center such as our full-time, year round drop-off site at 1105 E 5th St. in Mishawaka which is open Tuesday-Saturday 8:30-3:30 pm. This center also accepts used oil, paint, lawn & garden chemicals, and ni-cad or lithium batteries.

Donations

Why not donate your dishwares, clothing, shoes, furniture, building materials, home improvement left-overs and office or kitchen appliances? Even after you no longer have a need for these items, many businesses in the community can benefit from your donations.

Not only do you allow these items to be reused by someone else, but you prevent these items from being discarded in the landfill. (Broken, torn or non-functioning items should be discarded in the general trash.) Check the following organizations for donation locations.

• Goodwill Industries International, Inc. - Stores
• Habitat for Humanity (ReStore) - Discount Building Materials
• The Salvation Army
• St. Vincent DePaul, Inc.-Thrift Store

2010 Calendar Magnets Available

The District has mailed your 2010 Calendar Magnets. If you have not received your magnet in the mail, please contact the District at (574) 235-9971 or e-mail Randy Przbysz

Comments

If you have a request (i.e., need a recycling container or other general information about waste reduction and recycling rom the District), an idea or comment, please phone (574) 235-9971 or fax (574) 235-9973 them to us at our office.

Other items or materials not handled by the District

We receive a number of calls asking us about the handling of different types of items that are not acceptable recycling materials. Some of the items are concrete, asphalt, scrap metal, furniture, and clothing, etc. If you have such items, please refer to other disposal servers to see other organizations who may accept your item.

Additional Solid Waste Management Payment Services Options

Since 2006, the District announced two new customer service options. The first (1) option will be the use the on-line page within this web site to make a MasterCard or Vista Credit Card Payment to pay for your curbside recycling services. It uses a secure web page using Authorize.net.

The second (2) option is the use of a credit or debit card to process your payment for curbside recycling services by telephone or in person at our Jefferson street office.

Invitations for Solid Waste Management Educational Presentations

The district conducts educational persentations and can provide educational materials to educators or any public organization who would be interested in running an educational program for to their members. Programs have been conducted at various schools and public locations (See Trash a Pizza ).

See how the Girl Scouts of Troop # 49 are learning the value of recycling.

Please call the district for additional information.

Learn how to handle Electonic Scrap Materials

As Hoosiers receive new electronic devices, such as televisions, computers, hand-held games, and cell phones, they may not know what to do with their unwanted and outdated electronic devices. Businesses are in the same boat, purchasing new computers, printers and more, and needing to get rid of them.

The Indiana Recycling Coalition (IRC) has initiated a statewide campaign to let Hoosiers know that electronic devices contain hazardous material, such as lead and mercury, and should not be thrown in the trash. Instead, the IRC provides many resources for reusing and recycling electronics when they are no longer needed.

The IRC has created a new informational web site at www.eScrapIndiana.org to highlight these resources. The website is a one-stop-shop for all information about proper management of electronics.

Our Household Hazardous Waste Center accepts outdated electronics "Free". If you interested to learn more, click here.

Indiana's Statewide Illegal Burning Education Campaign

The Solid Waste Management District of St. Joseph County has joined a statewide cooperative of 25 local Solid Waste Management Districts and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management to address the serious problem of illegal burning of trash across Indiana. Indiana's Statewide Illegal Burning Education Campaign links Hoosier communities in an effort to fight illegal burning and will educate citizens that this behavior is no longer acceptable due to substantial risks to human health and our environment.

National Soft Drink Association

See National Soft Drink Association's  -  Annual 2003 Comprehensive Litter Prevention Awards.

Past Events

Those events we've participated in the previous year include: