The Clay County Sanitation Department will conduct a spring cleanup event next week to provide residential pickup for large items residents can not transport themselves.
Director of the Sanitation Department Meghan Deckard said the initiative is funded through a Tennessee Department of Transportation litter grant. Deckard said the department typically performs this service once a year to assist citizens who do not have the trucks or trailers necessary to move bulky items like furniture and appliances.
“I think it helps a lot of course, for some people clutter can be a big, a strain on mental health,” Deckard said. “So hopefully that can kind of help people get encouragement to have less stuff in their way to be able to just feel better, have more room for stuff that they want to personally do.”
Deckard said the department is accepting a wide range of materials including electronics, scrap metal, and large appliances such as refrigerators and freezers. Deckard said the event excludes regular household garbage and yard waste because the local facilities are not equipped to handle those specific types of disposal.
“It’s mainly for, you know, recyclable items, whether that be clothing, plastic, glass, paper, aluminum, scrap metal,” Deckard said. “And like I mentioned, larger items like furniture, electronics. It’s just kind of those items that, you know, people most of the time wouldn’t have a, maybe they don’t have a truck, maybe they don’t have a trailer, maybe they don’t know somebody that would be able to assist them with getting those items disposed of.”
Deckard said the department also collects donations of clothing, shoes, and toys to be rehomed in Overton County. Deckard said these items are provided to families in need or used in the event of a local natural disaster.
“Some folks would rather see items go to a new home rather than be disposed of in our landfill, especially with clothing, shoes, toys,” Deckard said. “So we try to, also it cuts down what we have to put into our containers to send to the landfill. So that also helps with that aspect of keeping things out of the landfill as much as possible.”
Deckard said the sanitation department does not normally offer residential pickups, making this event a unique opportunity for the public to interact with staff. Deckard said the effort helps new property owners who may have inherited debris and provides them with information on future disposal options.
“A successful day would be just going out and, of course, getting to know our public in the county and make connections with people,” Deckard said. “Getting the stuff out of their way and giving them any information, answer any questions that they might have about where they might be able to take something, or what other options they might have outside of the week that we do do this event.”
Clay County Residents interested in being added to the pickup list should call the office at 931-243-4478 to ensure their specific district is serviced during the designated week.
