Automated trash-collection coming soon

LIHU‘E — Starting June 1, the county’s Department of Public Works Solid Waste Division staff will be going door to door delivering automated-refuse-collection brochures to residents in the Lihu‘e area.

The brochures contain detailed information on the county’s new automated-refuse-collection service, which is scheduled to begin on July 1 with 3,000 homes in Lihu‘e and Puhi and portions of Hanama‘ulu converting to the new system, states a county press release.

If a resident isn’t home, the brochure will be placed on a doorknob and secured with a ribbon except in places where the brochure is exposed to the weather or safety is an issue.

Those who don’t receive brochures on the automated system will be given one when the new carts are distributed on June 19 and 20, and possibly on June 26 and 27.

Residents will be issued a cart that is designed to work with a specialized side-loader refuse truck with a mechanical arm.

The cart has a 96-gallon capacity, which is three times more than the current limit in the manual-collection program.

Along with the start of the automated-refuse-collection service, the schedule for rubbish pickup for most other homes on the island will change July 1, even for those not yet converting to the automated program, the release states.

Changes to the refuse-collection schedule are due to route adjustments for phase one of the automated program that caused a “ripple effect” and required reorganization of collection routes throughout the island, states the release.

See the county website, www.kauai.gov/refusecollection or call 241-4895 to confirm new refuse pick-up days, which will be in effect July 1.

More information regarding the roll-out of the county’s automated-refuse-collection system and changes to the trash pick-up schedule will be issued shortly, the release states.