ElSobrante

EL SOBRANTE SERVICE

In the absence of an exemption issued by Contra Costa County Environmental Health, all occupied properties are required to have weekly waste collection service. Under County Health and Safety Code, property owners may be held liable for costs associated with nuisance abatement resulting from lack of solid waste collection service.

Solid wastes are collected weekly; recyclables and yard wastes are collected bi-weekly on alternating weeks.

Owners or their designated representatives or agents (including managers and tenants) may subscribe for solid waste collection service. It is RSS policy to bill owners unless an agent (property manager, tenant or other representative) has been designated and authorized in writing to receive billings and other information.

To protect property interests and prevent the blight of accumulated wastes, owners are strongly encouraged to arrange for waste collection services at their rental properties.

Containers
Standard service consists of a brown cart for solid wastes, one blue 65-gallon cart for recyclables and one green 65-gallon cart for yard wastes. All containers are provided and serviced by Richmond Sanitary Service (RSS). Only containers provided by RSS will be serviced. When filled, materials should not extend beyond the container rim and the lid should fit properly when closed. The weight of the containers should not exceed the allowable limit indicated on the cart. If the cart is too full for the lid to close properly, or the wastes are compacted, an extra fee will be charged (see “Extra Wastes” in the Special Services).

Collection Day

Collections may not be made at the same time on collection day each week.
To assure collection, containers must be placed at the curb by 6:00 a.m. on collection day.
Face carts toward the street with wheels against the curb or gutter.
Allow at least 2 feet between carts and 5 feet from other objects (i.e., automobiles, mail boxes, power poles, etc).
To minimize spillage in the emptying process, make sure lids are securely shut.
In consideration for your neighbors and to keep your community attractive, empty carts should be removed from the curb and placed out of public view by 7:00 p.m. on collection day.

If containers are not put out on collection day, customers have the option to wait until the next week for pick-up or to request a “call back” pickup. Call back service is subject to an additional charge. Carts not placed out for collection on time are not eligible for credit.

Billing and Payments

For customer convenience and cost containment, residential customers are billed quarterly in advance. Bills are due upon receipt and considered past due at the end of the first month of the billing period. Past due accounts are subject to late payment charges applied at 60 days. Service will be suspended for non-payment. We are required to report occupied properties without subscription to weekly waste collection service to the County Environmental Health Department.

Payments may be made by check, money order or credit card by mail using the tear-off coupon from your bill. Checks returned from the bank for insufficient funds are subject to processing charges as permitted by state law ($25 for the first check, $35 for subsequent dishonored checks). Credit card payments may be made through the online bill pay service or by telephone at (877) 692-9729.

Cash payments can be made only at the RSS business office located at 3260 Blume Drive, Suite 100, in Richmond. There is no other authorized payment center. We strongly recommend that you do not make payments at any third-party merchant because you run the risk of your payment not reaching Richmond Sanitary Service and your account becoming delinquent.

Garbage/Solid Waste Collection—BROWN Cart
Use your brown cart for regular household garbage (also referred to as “solid waste”). To take full advantage of your service and help the environment, make sure to maximize use of our recycling and yard waste collection services using the blue and green carts.

Unacceptable Brown Cart Items

Explosive, hazardous or toxic material of any kind
Hot ashes
Sod
Dirt and rocks
Concrete
Liquids or petroleum products

Insecticides, herbicides, paint, oil, gasoline, anti-freeze or similar substances*

Car parts, tires and batteries
Lumber

With the exception of small pieces of painted lightweight woods such as wood trim that can fit in the cart with the lid properly closed

Furniture
Appliances such as microwave ovens and televisions*
Household batteries*
Mercury-containing items

Cell/cordless phones, answering machines, computers, computer screens, computer parts DVD/VCR players, fluorescent lamps, thermostats, etc.*

* Take to the Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 101 Pittsburg Ave., Richmond.

On-Call Clean-up for Solid Waste or (all Green Waste)—NO EXTRA COST
Each calendar year, residential customers are entitled to two (2) on-call clean-up collections without additional charge. On-call Clean-ups can be used either for trash or all green wastes (mixed set-outs must be collected and disposed of as solid wastes). Please contact us or call our customer service office at (510) 262-7100 at least one week in advance to schedule your collection day. Trash Clean-up collections will be made on the customer’s regular collection day; all green waste clean-up pickups will be made on the regular green waste collection day. Up to two cubic yards (12-15 bags) will be picked up on each clean-up collection. Containers will not be returned—all items must be bagged. Bags should be no larger than 35-gallons, weigh no more than 30 pounds and be strong enough to hold the materials without breaking.

For green waste only clean-ups, materials must be placed in compostable bags of 30-35 gallons, or less. Compostable bags can be purchased at some Bay Area retail outlets, and via the internet. They can also be purchased from Richmond Sanitary Service either at our office or by mail order (postage and applicable fees will apply). Please call (510) 262-7100 for more information.

Please note: These environmentally friendly bags are highly light and moisture sensitive, so they should be stored in a cool dry place and should not be set out for collection earlier than the evening before your scheduled pick up day.

Materials in plastic bags or mixed set-out piles will be collected and disposed of as garbage and are subject to additional disposal charges.

Mini-can Service
For single-occupant households, or those that generate smaller quantities of waste, 20-gallon “mini-can” service is available. Call (510) 262-7100 for more information.

Residential Rental Units
By local ordinance, although not obliged to underwrite the cost of waste collection service (it can be included in the rent), owners of residential rental units may be held liable for nuisance abatement charges for properties without weekly waste collection service. It is RSS policy to bill owners, or with written authorization, their designated agent, property manager or other representative.

To protect property interests and prevent the blight of accumulated wastes, owners are strongly encouraged to arrange for waste collection services at their rental properties.

Recyclables Collection – Blue Cart
Use your 65-gallon blue cart for recycling. Place rinsed recyclable containers and papers loose in the cart—do not bundle or place recyclable materials in plastic or paper bags. Don’t put non-recyclables in the recycling cart—place those in the brown waste cart. Contaminated recycling carts are subject to return trip collection and waste (garbage) disposal charges.

Acceptable Blue Cart Items

White, colored & mixed paper, newspaper
Paper bags, junk mail, envelopes
Telephone books, corrugated cardboard
Cereal-type boxes, cardboard egg cartons
Magazines, catalogs, paperback books
Non-carbon forms
Plastic milk/water jugs, water, soda, juice bottles
Aluminum cans, foil pans
Glass bottles, jars (all colors)
Steel/tin cans
#1 PETE and #2 HDPE narrow neck bottles
#3-7 plastic narrow neck bottles

Unacceptable Blue Cart Items

Plastic bags
Styrofoam and take out containers
Yogurt and cottage cheese containers
Microwave trays
Food products
Food contaminated paper products, pizza boxes
Soy milk containers
Straws or plastic utensils
Waxed cardboard

Milk cartons, juice boxes

Paper plates, paper towels, napkins, tissues
Toys
Garden hose
Plastic tarps
Window glass
Dishware and drinking glasses
Paint cans
Hazardous, toxic or explosive materials of any kind
Hot ashes
Sod
Dirt and rock
Concrete
Painted or treated wood
Ferrous metals
Household batteries*
Household Hazardous Wastes *
Electronic or mercury containing items*

*Take to the Household Hazardous Waste Facility at 101 Pittsburg Ave., Richmond.

Additional recycling carts are available at a modest charge. Please call our Customer Service Office for details.

Removal (theft) of recyclable items from curbside carts is illegal and makes it more difficult for your community to meet its mandated diversion goals. Please report any incidents of recyclables theft by calling the non-emergency telephone line of your sheriff’s department.

Recyclables Buy-Back Center
The Buy-Back Center buys CRV (California Redemption Value) glass bottles and jars, aluminum cans, metals, PET soda bottles, and HDPE jugs and other plastics. All types of paper and cardboard may be donated. Located at 101 Pittsburg Avenue, Richmond, the center is open weekdays from 8:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m. and is closed from 12:00 p.m.-1:00 pm.

Reuse and Recycle
You can take a wide range of materials not allowed in the curbside recycling cart to various locations for reuse or recycling. For details, visit these links.

For a free copy of the Contra Costa County Reuse and Recycling Guide or other information regarding local reuse and recycling options, visit the County’s Recycling Website at www.cccrecycle.org or call the county’s recycling hotline at (800) 750-4096.

E-Waste and Universal Waste
The Household Hazardous Waste Center at the West County Integrated Resource Recovery Facility (IRRF) accepts TV and computer monitors and universal wastes (household batteries, fluorescent lamps, thermostats, CPU’s and peripherals, VCR/DVD players, microwaves, radios and CD players, cell phones and telephone answering machines) at no cost to Richmond Sanitary Service area residents. There is a fee for business drop-offs. Bring your most recent waste collection service bill and proof of residency. There is a limit of five (5) large electronic items per visit. The HHW Center, located at 101 Pittsburg Avenue (off the Richmond Parkway) in Richmond The center is open Thursdays, Fridays and the first Saturday of each month from 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., and is closed 12:00 p.m.-12:30 p.m. for lunch.

Used Motor Oil Recycling Collection
Richmond Sanitary Service collects used motor oil and filters from the curb. Contact us to obtain an oil recycling kit that includes an unbreakable plastic container with secure screw-on cap and a leak-proof bag for filters. To arrange a convenient collection date, click here to send us a message or call us at (510) 262-7100.

Green Waste Collection – GREEN Cart
Place all green wastes (also referred to as “yard wastes”) directly in your 65-gallon green cart. Do not place any materials in plastic bags. Contaminated green waste carts are subject to return trip collection and waste (garbage) disposal charges.

**What to place in GREEN cart

P       Yard trimmings

P      Grass clippings

P       Leaves and flowers

P       Pine needles

P       Weeds

P      Uncooked fruit, vegetables, trimmings

P       Unpainted & untreated wood (small pieces)

What NOT to place in GREEN cart

W        Plastic bags

W        Palm leaves, bamboo, ivy

W        Lawn sod

W        Painted or treated wood

W        Dirt, rock, sand, concrete,

W        Ash or burned material

W        Pet waste, manure

W        Lumber over 4” x 4” x 24”

Additional green waste carts are available at a modest charge. Please call our customer service office for details or click here to send us a message.

Your annual on-call clean-ups can be used for all green waste collection. Please see “On-Call Clean-up—No Extra Cost” under GARBAGE COLLECTION** above or call our customer service office for more information.

Christmas Tree Recycling
To help your community meet its state mandated landfill waste diversion goals, UNFLOCKED, NATURAL Christmas trees (free of tinsel, ornaments, stands, etc.) will be collected as a part of the green waste recycling program on your scheduled green waste collection day. Christmas trees must be placed inside your green cart—cut to size so that contents will fall freely when serviced—on your scheduled green waste collection day. Please remember that carts with materials extending beyond the rim of the container are subject to extra waste charges.

Richmond Sanitary Service customers with recyclable trees that are unable to meet their scheduled green waste collection day may take their Christmas tree to the Golden Bear Transfer Station to be recycled at NO CHARGE through the first weekend in February. This free service is offered only to Richmond Sanitary Service customers. Please bring your most recent Richmond Sanitary Service bill and proof of residency. Regular disposal charges will apply to artificial trees, trees that are flocked, wrapped in cloth or plastic, contaminated with tinsel or ornaments, and trees with stands attached.

Flocked, artificial trees and trees wrapped in cloth or plastic are not recyclable. Non-recyclable tree pickup must be scheduled by calling our customer service office at (510) 262-7100. There will be a $15 pickup fee for non-recyclable trees. To be collected curbside, non-recyclable natural trees must be cut so that pieces are no longer than 4 feet long. Non-recyclable trees may also be cut to size to fit in the brown waste cart with the lid closed.

SPECIAL SERVICES

Extra Wastes
Refilled containers, carts with compacted wastes, carts filled above the rim or additional wastes beyond the service subscription level are considered extra waste and are subject to additional charge. Please call our Customer Service Office in advance to make arrangements for extra waste collection service. Owners of residential rental units may be liable for extra waste charges and must notify the customer service office if no extra waste is to be taken from a rental unit.

Residential Pre-paid Bag Service
Pre-paid bag service is available for residential customers who occasionally have extra wastes. Pre-paid bag ties can be purchased from our customer service office, or by mail. Mail orders are sent certified mail with return receipt at an additional cost, plus postage. Mail rates are subject to change. Contact us to order or call (510) 262-7100 for more information.

Carry-out Service
Collection rates are based on curbside collection of waste and recyclables. Special arrangements may be made for carry-out service for households where none of the occupants is physically able to move their containers to the curb for collection. A doctor’s certificate documenting the disability is required for this special service and must be renewed annually. For others who prefer on-site collection, carry-out service is available at an additional cost. Please call (510) 262-7100 for more information.

Bulky Item Pick-up
Arrangements for special pickup of bulky items, including mattresses, furniture, refrigerators and freezers, or larger quantities of wastes may be made by calling the customer service office. Richmond Sanitary Service will estimate the cost of special pickup service in accordance with current rates, which will include a pickup fee, disposal charge and any applicable special service charges (i.e., refrigerant removal).

Debris Boxes
Richmond Sanitary Service is the only collector authorized to collect wastes and recyclables in West County. Debris boxes (10-40 yards) are available on 3 day rentals for household remodeling, landscape projects, site clean-up or other projects. Debris box rates vary by box size and filled weight. Call (510) 262-7100 for more information.