What do you get when you drop a pumpkin?

- Squash!

Fall-ow us for more knowledge 😉

SVR’s 2026 Employee of the Year

Congratulations to Rafa Alfaro!

Rafa was selected through colleague nominations for this year’s award. He is easygoing, approachable, and always willing to help. He is a true hustler—much like the Energizer Bunny, he just keeps going and going! Even when you stop to say hello, he is always polite and friendly while continuing to stay focused on the task at hand. He consistently stays busy and has done an outstanding job keeping the fleet running smoothly and up to date. Rafa is truly a pleasure to be around, and the entire team appreciates his positive demeanor, helpful attitude, and approachable character.

Rafa Alfaro, Equipment Maintenance Technician II

Engineering & Environmental Compliance

Department

Our Solid Waste Technicians have been busy this summer constructing over 30 landfill gas wells.

The wells are constructed with perforated pipe, drain rock, bentonite and a lot of hard work.

Of course that is worth celebrating!

FREE TIRE RECYCLING EVENT IS BACK

AT ALL THREE FACILITIES

October 1 - November 8

Tired of hanging on to these? Bring them to our facilities. Through a grant from CalRecycle, Salinas Valley Residents can bring up to 9 small car tires to our facilities at No Cost.

SVR Youth Council Receives 2026 Next Generation Award from California Resource Recovery Association (CRRA)

At this year’s annual conference, CRRA recognized our Youth Council with this well-deserved award. This award is given to a young individual or youth group that set’s themselves apart from their peers in promoting waste prevention, recycling, composting, zero waste, or buying recycled.

SVR’s Youth Council has done just that - they have used what they’ve learned about our waste and recycling industry and created projects that make a difference back into our communities, like clothing swaps at their schools, participating in community events teaching others about composting and recycling, designing and starring in its own educational content.

Like one of our youth council peeps said,

“Don’t be trashy!”

Unwanted Mattress?

You’ve got options!

We take them for FREE.

Bring them to our facilities (10 units max):

Jolon Road Transfer Station, near King City
Johnson Canyon Landfill, near Gonzales
Madison Lane Recycling Center, in Salinas

SVR’s mattress recycling program is one of the top recycling sites in the region, averaging the most mattresses per pickup and recycling nearly 1.5 million pounds of material over the past three and a half years. Since MRC’s Bye Bye Mattress program began 10 years ago, Monterey County residents have recycled more than 280,000 mattresses.

Compost Workshop & Compost Giveaway

Join us for a hands-on composting workshop where you’ll learn the basics, meet your neighbors, and head home with a free compost system to get started.

We’re also giving away free compost for your garden—so bring a shovel, buckets, or even a truck to load up!

Main Office

126 Sun St

Salinas, CA 93901

Mon-Fri 8am-5pm

(831) 775-3000

info@svswa.org