St. Johns County Solid Waste Division
The Curbside Times
September 2026 Newsletter
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The Solid Waste Division is dedicated to delivering sustainable services to meet the community's ever-changing solid waste management needs. With weekly curbside collections for over 120,000 residential units, we take pride in serving our community and providing the high-quality and timely services that every resident deserves. | | | | Photo Caption: Viki and Mike Cofone with Eagle Scout Federick volunteering with the American Flag Rescue Program. | |
American Flag Rescue Program Surpasses 30,000 Flags Rescued
The American Flag Rescue Program in St. Johns County is proud to celebrate another incredible milestone—more than 30,000 American flags have now been rescued and retired with dignity!
Volunteers Viki and Mike Cofone recently picked up a collection of flags from the Tax Collector’s Main Office in St. Augustine, providing more than enough flags to push the program’s total past the 30,000 mark. With American Flag Rescue collection boxes available at all four of the St. Johns County Tax Collector’s office locations, Tax Collector Jennifer Ravan and her staff have played an important role in helping the program reach this milestone.
In recognition of their continued support, the Tax Collector’s Office will be presented with an authentic 48-star American flag—one of only eight such flags recovered since the American Flag Rescue Program began. Every day is Flag Day in St. Johns County!
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Zero Waste Week
September 7 - 11, 2026
This international grassroots campaign helps individuals, businesses, and schools reduce landfill waste, save money, and protect the environment.
This year's focus is FOOD WASTE, which spotlights how tackling preventable food loss and waste can lower greenhouse gas emissions.
Food waste accounts for up to 10% of global greenhouse gases and 14% of global methane emissions. Nearly one-fifth of all consumer-available food is wasted globally.
What can you do to participate?
Shop Your Kitchen
Cook a "clear-out-the-pantry" meal before buying any new groceries.
Map Your Meals
Write a strict grocery list based only on what you will actually cook.
Buy the "Uglies"
Select imperfectly shaped fruits and vegetables that stores often discard prematurely.
Freeze for Later
Preserve excess fresh produce or leftovers before they have a chance to spoil.
Compost the Scraps: Treat backyard composting as your absolute last-resort safety net for unavoidable food scraps.
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🌱 Regrow Your Groceries
Before tossing vegetable scraps, take another look. Some kitchen leftovers can be placed in water or soil and encouraged to grow again!
Green onion roots are one of the easiest options. Place the white ends root-side down in a small glass with enough water to cover the roots, then set them near a sunny window. Fresh green shoots should begin appearing within days. The bases of celery, romaine lettuce and bok choy can also sprout new leaves when placed cut-side up in a shallow dish of water. Once new growth and roots appear, they can be transferred to soil.
You can even plant sprouted garlic cloves or the root end of an onion to grow flavorful green shoots. These scraps may not always produce a full replacement vegetable, but they can provide fresh greens while demonstrating how something headed for the trash can become something useful.
Quick tip: Change the water every few days to keep scraps fresh and prevent odors.
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Solid Waste Holiday Hours
Solid Waste Offices will be closed on Monday, September 7 in observance of Labor Day.
- The Tillman Ridge and Stratton Road Transfer Stations will continue their normal operating hours on Monday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Curbside collection for household garbage, recycling, and yard waste will NOT be affected.
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Hurricane Preparedness
Resources for SJC Residents
June 1 marked the beginning of hurricane season. It is important to make sure you are prepared in advance. Below are some resources for SJC residents. Also, make sure to Follow the Official St. Johns County and SJC Emergency Management Facebook pages for real-time updates before, during, and after a storm.
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Shout-Out to Christy Chapman!
We received a wonderful compliment from a resident who wanted to recognize Christy Chapman for her outstanding customer service. The resident shared that every time she has called and spoken with Christy, she has been positive, professional, and genuinely caring about her concerns. She specifically wanted to commend Christy for always going above and beyond for the residents of St. Johns County. Thank you, Christy, for consistently demonstrating compassion, professionalism, and a commitment to providing exceptional service to our residents!
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Hastings Annual Back-to-School Event
The 10th Annual Back-to-School Festival was hosted by the St. Johns County Public Library and TeamUP Hastings. The back-to-school drive provided the community with necessary physical exams and much-needed school materials, including backpacks, notebooks, binders, paper, and pencils, supporting more than 480 children as they prepared for the 2026-2027 school year.
The event brought the community together to enjoy great conversation, food, and drinks. Parents also had the opportunity to visit the Solid Waste outreach table to ask questions about recycling and took home valuable information to help them on their recycling journey.
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🕰️From the Curbside Archives: Meet the "White Wings"
Long before garbage trucks became a familiar sight on neighborhood streets, New York City had the "White Wings."
The nickname dates back to 1895, when New York City's Department of Street Cleaning began outfitting its street cleaners in distinctive white uniforms. The workers became known as the White Wings and were part of a major effort to improve sanitation and cleanliness throughout the city. At the time, approximately 2,000 workers were responsible for cleaning 450 miles of streets each day.
This Library of Congress photograph captures the White Wings at work during a New York City garbage strike from Nov. 8-11, 1911. The workers can be seen sweeping and gathering garbage while under police protection.
More than a century later, the equipment, uniforms and methods may look very different, but the mission remains familiar: keeping communities clean and safely managing the waste we generate.
💡 Did You Know?
The White Wings weren’t just known for keeping New York City’s streets clean. They became something of a spectacle themselves! In 1903, more than 350 White Wings marched in a parade through the city, an event captured on film by Thomas Edison’s company. And yes, those bright white uniforms were their actual work clothes. Not exactly the color we’d choose for garbage collection today!
| "White Wings" under police protection, New York City, Nov. 8-11, 1911. Photo by Bain News Service. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. | | |
Download the St. Johns County Recycle Coach App
Become a Better Recycler
Download the app or go to www.RecycleStJohns.com to get your curbside collection schedule, sign up for alerts, and quickly learn how to properly dispose of different waste materials.
Download the Recycle Coach App and become a better recycler today!
Apple App Store | Google Play
| | Top Material Searches on Recycle Coach Last Month | |
Recycling
Clean and empty food and beverage containers, soap bottles and jugs, and empty pill bottles.
Labels and caps do not need to be removed. Please remove pumps and sprayers. NO Styrofoam®, NO plastic bags.
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Electronic Waste
Televisions and computer monitors require special handling to recover the materials they're made from. Please bring them to an electronics recycling drop-off location.
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Garbage
Styrofoam is not accepted for recycling. Please consider reuse options or put these items in the garbage.
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Total Recycled
Collected Year-to-Date
16,195 tons
| Our goal at the Solid Waste Division is to divert as much waste as we can from the landfill. One of the best ways to do this is through our residential curbside recycling program. This Recycle Tracker shows how well we're doing in St. Johns County. | | |
Total Flags
Collected to date
30,531 flags
| The American Flag Rescue Program provides residents with the opportunity to properly retire flags with honor and respect. American Flag Drop Boxes are available to the public in over 35 locations throughout St. Johns County. | | |
Total Litter
Collected Year-to-Date
12,888 pounds
| The St. Johns County Adopt-A-Road program provides an opportunity for residents, businesses, nonprofits, and community groups to adopt sections of county road and help remove litter and debris in an effort to keep St. Johns County beautiful | |
| | Get more St. Johns County news by receiving our e-newsletters. | Stay informed with accurate, timely information through a blend of community outreach initiatives by the Office of Public Affairs. | | | | | | |
