No set date for residential curbside recycling to resume

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Beginning Wednesday the City of Columbia will suspend residential curbside recycling.

City staff will not pick up recycling for the foreseeable future.

According to a press release from the city, a shortage in sanitation workers, especially commercial driver's license operators, was the primary reason for the decision. The city has said for several years that it has struggled to maintain workers in the department.

Benjamin Asbeck lives in west Columbia, and had recycling sitting in front of his home Tuesday waiting to be picked up. Asbeck lives in an area of the city that will have its recycling picked up at least one more time by the end of the week.

"You know with COVID we're ordering a lot more online so we have a lot more boxes and a lot more plastic and things that would be recycled," he said

The city has 11 locations where people can drop of residential recycling.

• Columbia College Dulany Hall (near 8th Street and Hickman Avenue)
• Columbia College Wrightman Building (south end of Pannell Street)
• The Armory (north parking lot at 7th Street and Park Avenue)
• 10th Street and Cherry Street (south side of the Cherry Street Parking Structure)
• Home Depot (3215 Clark Lane)
• Moser’s on Keene (900 North Keene Street)
• Moser’s Supermarket (705 West Business Loop 70)
• 3601 South Providence Road (outer road north of Nifong)
• State Farm Parkway (on Nifong just east of Grindstone)
• University of Missouri (Bluford Hall on Kentucky Avenue)
• University of Missouri (Shurz Hall on Ashland Road east of College Avenue)

Director of City of Columbia Utilities David Sorrell said he encourages people to utilize these locations in the press release.

"We encourage our residents to continue recycling by using one of our eleven drop off locations located throughout Columbia. We are also exploring additional locations for drop off recycling, especially on the north side of Columbia," he said.

Asbeck said his family has not decided whether they will drop off their own recycling.

"There are places that I think you can take the recycling. I'm honestly not sure where that is, but it is a little bit more inconvenient, especially if we're trying to stay home and not go out and contact other people," he said.

This is not the first time the city has delayed residential curbside pickup in 2020.

On April 1, the city announced crews were not able to pick up all recycling and asked residents to keep it at the curb to be picked up later in the week.

Crews did not pick up recycling for the week of May 25 after several solid waste employees and several temporary employees were placed in isolation after being exposed to COVID-19.

Crews did not pick up recycling the week of June 29 because of a staffing shortage as well.

Asbeck said not everyone may be able to drop off their own recycling.

"It definitely favors privilege because, you know, you have to have a car, you have to have the ability to drive, so there's a level of privilege to be able to take your own recycling to a recycling center," he said.

He said the changes in service force people to face a decision about how or if they want to continue recycling.

"I'm more likely just to say, 'You know what? If you're not going to pick up my recycling I'm just going to throw it away.' But I want to be responsible and recycle," he said. "So there's that conflict of convenience versus, you know, just being responsible."

He said he was surprised when he moved to Columbia and found that the city did not use rolling carts. He said this could be a solution to the staffing issue because they require less people to collect recycling and trash.