Sanitation Division

Garbage Collection

The City of Newton Public Works and Utilities Department offers Sanitation service on a once per week basis. This means all collection services (i.e. Garbage, Recycling, Whitegoods, and Yard waste) will be picked up curbside on your assigned collection day. If you do not know your collection day, please contact Public Works at 828 695-4310.

Pick-up times will vary on occasion. Inclement weather, excessive pick-ups, holidays, etc will cause delays. To avoid missing your collection, items must be at the curb no later than 7:00 a.m. on your assigned collection day.

The City also asks you to bag your garbage before placing it in the container. Loose Garbage, especially food or other perishable items have a tendency to stick to the bottom of the can making it impossible to collect.
Remember to have your collection items curbside by 7:00 a.m.

What Do We Pick Up?

  • Household Trash: The city will provide a roll-out container for household garbage.

  • Furniture(i.e. sofas, tables, chairs, etc... in limited quantities)

  • Small Electronic Appliances(i.e. toasters, microwaves, etc...)

  • Large Household Appliances: (doors and plastic shelves must be removed from refrigerators and freezers) A $10.00 fee is charged for the pick-up of whitegoods, cast iron tubs and riding mowers.

  • Electronic Devices (i.e. stereo, radio, television, computers, monitors, etc…)

  • Bedding (i.e. mattress, box spring, etc...)

  • Outdoor Items (i.e. lawn furniture, umbrella, fencing, gutters, vinyl siding, paint cans) *Paint cans must be empty or the paint must be dry.

  • Recreational items (i.e. bicycle, work-out equipment, toys, etc…)

  • Automotive Items (e.g. tires and batteries). Tires must be removed from the rim. There is a limit of five tires per year per household. No tires will be collected from businesses. 

  • Cardboard:  The city does not recycle residential cardboard. However, we will dispose of boxes with your garbage items on your assigned collection day. Please break boxes and fold flat for easier handling.

  • Recyclables: Recyclables will be collected on the same day as your roll-out. Do not put recyclables in your roll-out container. These items will be collected from your red container by a different crew. (The City of Newton only recycles newsprint, plastic, glass and aluminum cans, telephone books, and magazines. Perishable food containers must be emptied and rinsed prior to placement in container. Doing so keeps the container sanitary and odor free. Please do not put garbage in recycle bins. We do not recycle plastic grocery bags. Please do not overload the recycle bins. If you do not have a red container at your residence and want to recycle, or you need a replacement bin, please call our office. We will deliver a bin to you.

  • Yard Waste: Yard waste (i.e. grass clippings, leaves, hedge & shrubbery clippings, small tree limbs, and other organic yard debris) is recyclable and will be collected on the same day as your roll-out by a different crew at a different time. Do not put yard waste in your roll-out or recyclable container. Yard waste should not be mixed with other collection items. Shrubbery trimmings, grass clippings, small trees, and limbs should be boxed or bagged so that one person can handle them.

  • Composting:  You can recycle organic materials such as fruit & vegetable peels, food scraps (no meats), grass clippings, leaves, etc., in your own compost bin. Earth worms and other organisms help to decompose these natural materials, and can be used as fertilizer. If you would like more information on composting contact your local Extension Agent at the Catawba County Agricultural Resources Center (www.ces.ncsu.edu/catawba) or by phone at 828-465-8250.

  • Brush and Large Limbs: The city is implementing some changes to its brush removal service policy, effective August 6, 2007. The goal of the changes is to provide improved customer service. Please keep in mind that the chipper truck does not follow the same route as the other residential trucks. Brush, tree limbs, etc. that have been cut by the homeowner and piled at the curb line in lengths no longer than ten (10) feet and with diameters no larger than six (6) inches, with cut ends facing the road, will be picked up according to an established chipping route. City crews will chip at a single residence for a maximum of thirty (30) minutes. Crews will chip excess brush for a fee of $50 per thirty (30) minute intervals. Please keep in mind that this fee is cost-based. If a resident does not wish to incur fees, only a one-ton pickup truck load (10-foot x 10-foot x 4-foot high) of brush should be placed at the curb each cycle. If your pile requires more than 30 minutes of labor, the crew will attempt to contact the resident. If contact is not made, an employee will leave a door hanger explaining the situation, and will contact the Public Works Department, which will in turn attempt to contact the resident. If no contact has been made by the time the truck finishes its cycle and returns to the home, the brush will be chipped at a charge of $50 per half-hour. The City encourages the use of permitted tree-trimmers for large jobs, as contractors are required to dispose of the brush themselves. Large piles of brush could result in significant charges for the residents.

To download a PDF copy of the city's sanitation brochure, please click here.

What We Do NOT Pick Up?  

The City does not pick up debris or rubbish generated from any type of remodeling, repair, or tearing down of any buildings or sheds. The person doing the work will be responsible for the removal of the debris.

Items considered to be construction debris are: shingles, lumber, plywood, particle board, landscape timbers, wooden pallets, scrap wood from building or remodeling projects, brick, stone, concrete, concrete blocks, plaster, vinyl siding, guttering, carpet, windows, or window frames including wood, metal, or vinyl frames.

Items considered as rubbish are large amounts of household items, carpet, clothing, or trash resulting from major cleanouts of houses, basements, attics, or storage sheds.

Contact the Catawba County Landfill (704-462-1348) for more information on how to dispose of the items above.

What if my collection items go uncollected?

If City crews miss your collection items, we will gladly send someone to collect your items the following morning. Your call will be noted in our system and a driver will be alerted of your complaint.

However, if your garbage was not collected because it was not at the curb by 7:00 a.m, the City uses the following guidelines to determine pick up:

  • 1st Time Not Collected: The City sends someone to collect the items the following morning after you call. The call is noted in our system.

  • 2nd Time Not Collected: The City sends someone to collect the items on the following morning. The Sanitation Supervisor is sent to the residence to verify if items were at the curb by 7:00 a.m. The call is noted in our system as a repeated miss and a letter is sent to the resident.

  • 3rd Time Not Collected: The City will not collect your items until the following week on your assigned collection day.