City of Portage, Indiana / Sanitation Division

Sanitation Division

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The city of Portage sanitation department is comprised of seven 25 yard capacity refuse trucks and 19 employees in driver, laborer and supervisory positions. The dept works Monday thru Friday picking up trash on daily garbage routes starting a 7:00 A.M. Each day. The garbage is collected on the sides of the roads in front of city residents homes. The trash is usually placed in boxes, bags and proper containers at the side of the road to maintain efficient pickup.

Some of the things that help the department work quickly and safely is to separate larger and bulky items from their regular household trash for easy pickup. Trash cans or containers should have secure handles on them for lifting and not be loaded with items of excessive weight. Also, the cans and containers should be no larger than 40 to 45 gallons in capacity. Containers of 50 gallons or larger may be used for trash storage in bags only, not in loose form. This will allow the workers to unload a larger container by hand rather than lifting it, which might cause injury. Some of the items that are not acceptable for collection are household hazardous waste items. These items consist of gasoline, oil, solvents, paint thinners, antifreeze, pool chemicals, acids, pesticides and wet paint. Also do not mix live rounds of ammunition in any form with the trash to be picked up. Anything that can be considered as an accelerant, combustible, or caustic can not be placed in a garbage truck because of their potential hazards. Any items pertaining to a building permit or work done by a contractor will not be picked up by the city. The homeowner is responsible for removal of these items. Dumpsters can be rented from private contractors at the homeowners expense.

The sanitation department would appreciate it if these kind of items were not mixed with regular household trash to ensure safe garbage collection. We also ask that residents place their trash no more than 5 feet from the road, and have their trash out by 6:00 A.M. on their day of collection. Anyone that may have any questions, comments, or suggestions about the sanitation department or trash collection please feel free to call the department during working hours at 762-4564.

The following dates there will be no sanitation services due to holiday.

January 1st 2012 Sunday (Monday) New Year's Day

February 20th 2012 Monday Presidents' Day

April 6th 2012 Friday Good Friday

May 28th 2012 Monday Memorial Day

July 4th 2012 Wednesday Independence Day

September 3rd 2012 Monday Labor Day

November 11th 2012 Sunday (Monday) Veterans' Day

November 22nd 2012 Thursday Thanksgiving Day

December 25th 2012 Tuesday Christmas Day