Separation of household waste from other debris essential.

Waste Management service recovery under way, including rapid mobilization of people, assets following impact of Hurricane Sandy.

EWING, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 2, 2012-- Following discussions with local officials, Waste Management has determined it is safe to resume collection in most areas of New Jersey, as well as Delaware and Eastern Pennsylvania.

With the resumption of most services on Oct. 31, WM expects most collection routes to be completed by Saturday and back on their regular schedule on Monday. Service in some communities has not resumed at the request of local government and emergency response officials. Up-to-date service information is available to WM customers through the company’s Hurricane Information banner on www.wm.com.

“As part of our storm management procedures, Waste Management conducted post-storm observations and discussed the situation with local officials,” said Tara Hemmer, area vice president for Waste Management’s Greater Mid-Atlantic area.

“After this consultation, we deemed it is safe to resume our collection and disposal operations. At the same time, we are expanding our response efforts to address additional critical needs arising from Sandy’s impact.”

Large volumes of household garbage resulting from this storm must be disposed of safely and efficiently. Residents need to be aware of the distinction between the household garbage that Waste Management will collect and storm-related debris, which may be collected by other service providers.

“Household waste should be bagged and placed at the curb for regular pickup,” said Jerry Giannini, area director of operations. “Storm debris, including refrigerators and household appliances, tree limbs, carpet and carpet padding, and other materials destroyed by the storm should be piled separately for easy identification and collection by cleanup contractors.”

Rapid storm recovery actions undertaken by Waste Management includes activation of Waste Management’s “Green Team” to mobilize people, fleet and equipment in targeted locations most in need of critical disposal services. More than 30 skilled employees from around the country have been deployed to assist with the response in the surrounding communities.

“Hurricane Sandy has created a great deal of challenges for residents and businesses throughout our service area,” said Hemmer. “Waste Management is focused on providing safe and environmentally sound collection and disposal services to all of our valued customers. We appreciate the cooperation and patience as we collectively work to meet the post-storm challenges presented by the storm.”

CONSUMER INFORMATION – SEPARATING HOUSEHOLD GARBAGE AND STORM DEBRIS

As families return to the areas affected by Hurricane Sandy, Waste Management strongly recommends that all residential customers separate their household garbage, such as food, diapers and regular household waste, from debris created by the storm and its aftermath. Waste Management asks that customers bag their household garbage and place it at the curb.

Storm debris, including refrigerators, household appliances, tree limbs, carpet and carpet padding, and wood fencing, should be placed in a separate pile or piles from your household garbage. This will allow storm cleanup contractors to identify and collect that storm debris. Storm debris cleanup services are contracted separately by municipal and county agencies. This storm debris collection is separate from the household garbage and trash collection service provided to customers of Waste Management.

During recovery and cleanup, property owners in many impacted communities can turn to Bagster^® Dumpster in a Bag^® as a solution to removing and disposing of debris quickly and safely following a storm. An innovation in waste removal, the Bagster bag is ideal in situations where there is a need to discard more debris than can fit in a typical bin or garbage receptacle, but not enough to require a dumpster.

Bagster bags are strong enough to hold 3,300 pounds of severe storm and tornado debris items, such as tree stumps, large tree limbs, roofing shingles, full sheets of plywood and sheetrock. For details about the Bagster bag and to locate the nearest Bagster bag retailer and service availability in your area, visit www.thebagster.com.

For storm recovery and service updates, visit http://www.wm.com/hurricane-info/index.jsp

ABOUT WASTE MANAGEMENT

Waste Management, Inc., based in Houston, Texas, is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management services in North America. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides collection, transfer, recycling and resource recovery, and disposal services. It is the largest recycler in North America and a leading developer, operator and owner of waste-to-energy and landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States. Its customers include residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers throughout North America. Visit www.wm.com or www.thinkgreen.com.

Source: Waste Management

Waste Management
Media Contacts:
Alyssa Ruggiero, 609.434.5666
aruggier@wm.com
or
John Hambrose, 570.562.1600 ext. 244
jhambros@wm.com