A major change to trash pickup and disposal will be coming in October to The Villages, but the impact on residents should be minimal.
The North Sumter County Utility Dependent Districts Board of Supervisors on Thursday discussed the timetable and particulars of the new solid waste disposal plan which will transport Villagers’ trash to a waste-to-energy plant in Okahumpka operated by Covanta Energy. NSCUDD oversees trash collection in Community Development Districts 1-11 in The Villages.
Once the trash and yard waste are hauled to the plant, the items will be burned, powered by furnaces that are kept at 1,900 and 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit. The Villages’ waste will make up about 40 percent of the tonnage processed at the Covanta plant in Okahumpka. The energy created by burning the waste will be transferred onto the Duke Energy grid.
The collection for Villagers will be, “A simple, seamless process,” promised Assistant District Manager Ken Blocker.
The most frequent question posed by residents to District officials has been about what color trash bags to use.
“It doesn’t matter. Just put it in a bag and put it out on the street,” Blocker said.
All of residents’ trash, garage and yard waste should be put out on the same collection days, which will still occur twice weekly. Yard waste can be bundled or bag. There is no more recycling collection and those items should be placed with garbage.
The routes for garbage trucks will be optimized for efficiency. That means about 9 percent of homes in The Villages served by trucks operated by NSCUDD will see their collection days changed. That’s fewer than 5,000 homes.
Blocker said that every effort will be made to effectively connect with those residents who will be impacted to make sure they understand the change in collection dates. Community Watch will visit those homes and leave door hangers to communicate the change. Information will also be sent to residents in their monthly bill.
NSCUDD directors at Thursday’s meeting took a virtual tour of the Covanta plant. You can take the tour at this link: COVANTA TOUR
