Garbage day

Here, the city collects our trash. The 2007 budget allocated $5.6 million US to collect the city's trash! The city has a fleet of garbage trucks, recycling trucks and even some trucks to pick up old appliances like refrigerators, washing machines and stoves.

The night before pickup day (or the morning, depending on how early one rises) we take our trash to the curb. Our garbage gets sorted by type:

• Lawn clippings and yard waste goes into brown paper bags to be composted
• Plastic containers go into a labeled recycling bin for recycling
• Glass containers go into another labeled recycling in for recycling
• Paper and cardboard get bundled together for recycling
• Finally, garbage like plastic packaging, food containers and the like go into plastic bags, bound for the landfill

It isn't the most glamourous of subjects, but the men who collect this trash deserve a big Thank You from all us citizens who benefit greatly from their hard work.