HOWARD CITY, MICH. — The Village of Howard City has formalized a contract with Green Valley Disposal Service to provide a unified trash pick up for all residential properties within its boundaries.

“Having a single waste hauler, within the Village, provides a substantial savings to each resident,” said Mark E Rambo, Village Manager “it also cuts down the local truck traffic since everything will be picked up in one day.”

Weekly trash service for a 96-gallon plastic cart will cost $10 per month per residence. If a residence does not generate enough trash to justify using a cart, they have the option of using a tag service for $1.50 per 32-gallon bag or bin. The program also provides tags for yard waste at a cost of $2.00 per 32-gallon bag or bin.

“The tag service provides much more flexibility then buying bags,” noted Rambo “this allows residents to use their own 32-Gallon plastic bin for yard waste or trash.”

Tags can be ordered over the phone directly from Green Valley Disposal with no additional shipping charges. Tags will also be available at several stores in downtown Howard City. Allowing residents to use their own 32-gallon plastic bin also reduces the risk of animals getting into the bags.

All resident must be switched over to Green Valley Disposal by December 1, 2006.

“We wanted to ensure that our residents would have enough time to make a smooth transition from their existing waste provider to the new provider,” said S. Michael Scott, Village President “the December timeline will give residents enough time to finish out the quarter.”

Residents that are ready to switch now may call Green Valley Disposal at (877) 977-3783. The first pick up will be Wednesday September 6^th, due to the holiday, and will be moved back to Tuesday thereafter.