Mower County’s recycling facilities and household hazardous waste collection to open May 4th

Mower County’s recycling facilities and household hazardous waste collection will open on May 4th.   

The Mower County Board of Commissioners discussed the situation with staff at a meeting on Tuesday and agreed to reopen the Austin recycling center drop-off and restart curbside pickup.  The drop-off facilities in outlying communities will also be reopened.  All facilities have been closed since March 18th along with curbside recycling collection and recycling drop-offs in rural areas of the county due to concerns with the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Mower County’s recycling center has up to 12 employees from the nonprofit Cedar Valley Services (CVS) who help sort and collect recyclables.  CVS has implemented new policies for their employees including social distancing and frequent hand washing, and they will be equipped with PPE gear and instructions.  Additional employees may be added and extended shifts may be implemented in the interim.

Mower County is asking the public to help phase in the startup by not putting all recycling at curbside and to not bring all of their recycling to the drop-off facility the first day or week.  The county is also asking residents to use the curbside service if it is provided instead of bringing their recyclables to the drop-off sites, and they are also asking residents to back vehicles  into the marked stalls at the drop-off facility and to maintain social distancing as much as possible.

Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) Collection will open for regular Wednesday hours starting May 6, 2020.  Staff will wear PPE and will use disinfectant on surfaces, pens, door handles, etc. between customers.  The “reuse room”, where salvaged material is displayed and can be picked up by the public, will not be open until further notice.  Mower County is requesting that the public observe all signs and delineators to help make ongoing recycling operations efficient.  Only one customer may be in the facility at a time, and the public is being asked to please consider waiting for a less busy time to bring all your waste products.

For more information, contact Mower County Public Works at 507-437-7718.