More than 200 contractors from across U.S. continuing to work daily on behalf of Sarasota County Government
Over the past 54 days, up to Dec. 6, Sarasota County’s debris contractors had collected 2 million cubic yards of storm debris from throughout unincorporated Sarasota County, county staff announced on Dec. 6.
In response to a Sarasota News Leader inquiry on Dec. 11, Genevieve Judge, public information and community outreach manager for the county, reported, “As of end of day Dec. 9 – A total of 2,100,856 cubic yards of debris have been collected.”
“More than 200 contractors from around the country continue to work daily to help collect storm debris from both Hurricanes Helene and Milton,” the Dec. 6 news release pointed out. “An estimated additional 400,000 cubic yards remains for collection,” it added.
“Substantial debris removal has been completed on the Keys” and other coastal areas that were heavily impacted by both storms, the release said. Many of the sub-zones on the barrier islands and others on the coast have been notified of final pass collections, which are expected to be completed in the coming weeks, the release noted.
Debris contractors also are making significant progress throughout the unincorporated areas of the county that sustained primarily vegetative damage because of high winds during Hurricane Milton, which made landfall on Siesta Key on Oct. 9, the release said.
In a Dec. 6 county staff-produced video, Wendi Crisp, who handles community outreach for the Solid Waste Department, appeared before a hill of vegetative storm debris at the county-owned Rothenbach Park on Bee Ridge Road. She noted that one of the most common questions staff has been asked is what happens to all of that debris. After the materials have been deposited at the park, she said, contractors grind them into mulch; then, the materials are trucked out and repurposed for agricultural uses.
As contractors reach substantial completion in each sub-zone, the release explained, Sarasota County staff conducts windshield assessments as a quality control measure to ensure all eligible materials have been collected before the work on roads and/or sub-zones are marked complete.
After a road or sub-zone has been marked complete, the release pointed out, this indicates that the debris collection is complete for that area and contractors will not be returning to collect additional materials. Disposal of any remaining debris is the property owner’s responsibility, the release said.
More than 440,000 tons of debris collected in city of Sarasota
In response to another News Leader inquiry, Luke Mocherman, the City of Sarasota’s communications assistant, wrote in a Dec. 11 email that the total amount of debris collected as of the night of Dec. 10 was 314,949 cubic yards, or 440,928.6 tons.
During the regular meeting of the Sarasota City Commission on Dec. 2, Mayor Liz Alpert asked Deputy City Manager Pat Robinson about the status of the collections in the municipality.
He was out of town over the Thanksgiving holiday, Robinson replied, but he had looked at one of interim City Manager Doug Jeffcoat’s updates via email earlier that day.
“I think we’re … well over” 400 tons picked up at this point, Robinson said. “We still have more to go.”
A lot of headway was being made in neighborhoods to which smaller trucks had been directed, Robinson continued. On the negative side, he said, “We still have some of the issues with commingled debris,” with people continuing to add fresh yard clippings to the piles they created after Hurricanes Helene and Milton, Robinson pointed out.
Nonetheless, he continued, “I feel comfortable that we will be done within that 90 days for [Federal Emergency Management] reimbursement opportunities.”
He added that he also believed the collections would be completed before Christmas; yet, he offered this caveat: “I’m an eternal optimist.”
Reminders for county residents
In the county, that advisory noted, debris collections resumed on Monday, Dec. 2, following the Thanksgiving holiday break that the workers took. “Contractors moved into additional sub-zones last week,” the advisory continued, collecting “an additional 120,000 cubic yards of debris.”
To track the progress of debris collection in any county community, the advisory suggested that people use the Debris Pickup Status Zone App. “A number of new features have been added to the county’s interactive storm debris collection status map,” the advisory pointed out. “Click here to watch the Storm Debris Pickup Status Map Update video.”
Staff also offered these reminders:
- Residents may dispose of storm debris at the Central County Landfill in Nokomis, with applicable disposal fees applied. “Please note that the two public drop-off sites” — at Rothenbach Park on Bee Ridge Road in Sarasota and the Jackson Road Transfer Station in Venice — have been closed since Nov. 23, the advisory emphasized.
- Residents who live north of Blind Pass will receive notification regarding when their first pass has been completed and when a second pass can start.
- Storm debris should be placed within 3 feet of the right of way, whenever possible.
- “Do not stack or lean materials on sidewalks or near mailboxes, fences, trees, utility poles, fire hydrants, water meters or backflow preventers.
- “After contractors complete the final pass of an area, they will not return. Removal and disposal of any remaining materials will be the property owner’s responsibility.”
For more information, a person may visit scgov.net or call Sarasota County at 311 or 941-861-5000.