When I made the decision to move to Bethlehem last year the one thing I wasn’t looking forward to was the regression in trash collection services compared to Allentown. In Allentown there’s city-wide garbage collection twice per week and recycling collection one per week. Bethlehem, on the other hand, has private garbage collection.
That means that not only do you have to seek out a trash hauler, but in most cases they only collect once per week and the city only collects recycling once every two weeks. As a single guy I can make this work, but I have no idea how families manage.
That said, even though the city does collect recycling once per week, they do not collect yard waste, unlike in Allentown where it’s picked up on your recycling night. Neither city collects grass trimmings, but not having a way to get rid of other yard waste was a problem. This past weekend I decided to remove two trees and a bush along with removing about six feet from the tops of two other bushes on my property. Needless to say, I had a lot of trimmings to get rid of. Thankfully there was an option, even if it did mean I had to enlist my parents’ SUV to help haul things away.
Bethlehem has a yard waste/composting center on Schoenersville Rd that’s open on the weekends and is free for city residents to drop off most yard waste (sorry anal lawn mower types, they don’t accept grass). It’s only a few miles from my house and while you need to be a resident of Bethlehem to drop off waste, mulch is free to anyone (per their website) and after looking at it, it’s pretty decent quality.
So, if you live in Bethlehem, stop trying to hide your trimmings in with your trash and drop them off at the city site. It’s free and, at least when I went, there was no waiting.
13/90
4 responses to “Bethlehem Recycles”
Families (like mine) manage the garbage and recycle schedule by over loading the garbage the second before they come to pick it up, and by taking extra loads to the recycle center if needed between scheduled pickups.
or….
live in squalor.
The city site does not take grass that is why people have to put it in with their garbage. You say take it to a city site – there are no city sites that take it. That is the cities problem and that is why I will keep putting my grass clippings in with my garbage.
… and that then can now be my garbage haulers problem. I pay them enough. Let them worry about it.
Sorry if my post was unclear. I did mention that the city doesn’t accept grass. When I said trimmings I meant tree branches, etc.