About Us

 Mission Statement

• To provide an excellent multi-faceted collection, disposal and recycling service to the citizens of Spokane, at the least possible cost consistent with modern Solid Waste Management practices.
• To remain organizationally efficient while recognizing the complexities of growth and change.
• To address environmental issues head on and protect our precious natural resources as identified by the general public, regulatory agencies and our elected officials.

A Few Fun Facts

The Department of Solid Waste Management started serving the City of Spokane in 1940 with curbside service. Over the years we have developed into an impressive operation involving systems such as source separation, automated collection and computerized routing.

In the spring of 1997, the Solid Waste Management Department started a curbside yard waste collection program. This program provides the residents of Spokane a convenient alternative for those who want to recycle their yard waste. The yard waste collection program has gone from 5,000 customers in 1997 to over 15,000 customers today and is still growing.

In October of 1990, the City of Spokane Solid Waste Management Department in compliance with Washington State Law, and the Spokane Comprehensive Solid Waste management plan, started a curbside recycling program. Solid Waste provides 18 gallon blue bins to each residence for designated recyclable materials. These recyclables are then collected on the same day as refuse. This program services about 6,000 residents daily. While this is an optional program we would love to see all Spokane residents participate. This is a free service to all single-family homes within the City limits.

In the spring of 1992, a commercial recycling collection program was implemented that provides service for multi-family dwelling units and business. While there is a small fee for this service, the cost savings on the level of garbage service offsets the fee for many.

The combined fleet of residential garbage trucks is comprised of 6 semi automated and 18 automated routes. The Solid Waste department collects over 13,000 residents daily. In a one-week period our trucks cover a 58.7 square mile area, that works out to 223 miles of arterials and 588 miles of residential streets. Our work hours are from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and all work is scheduled Monday through Friday with the exception of holiday-delayed service. Throughout its existence in Spokane, automated collection has proven efficient, allowing for a single-person automated truck to service as many homes in a day as a two person manually loaded truck did.

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