Staffing shortage delays yard waste pickup in Rockville displeasing some residents

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. ( DC News Now ) – Some residents in Rockville are displeased after their yard waste pick up has been inconsistent and has been sitting on their curb days.

The city said the issue largely comes down to the time of year.

“Sometimes it’s later in the day,” Brian Decicco, who lives in Rockville, said. “Like that same day. Sometimes it’s the next day. If it’s been more than a couple days, I’ll usually bring it back in. I mean, it’s kind of an inconvenience mostly because then it just piles up.”

Decicco said that has been the experience he has had recently in Rockville when it comes to getting rid of his yard waste.

“I don’t get too bent out of shape,” he said. “I realize they’re understaffed and the guys who are working always look like they’re hustling, so I get it.”

The bottom line is that there are fewer people there to hustle this summer. The city said the availability of other seasonal jobs often creates a staffing shortage, leading to fewer workers to remove yard waste.

Collections still are taking place and the city is recruiting sanitation workers to bring staffing levels back to normal. They are asking people whose yard waste isn’t picked up on its normal collection day to leave it at the curb until crews are able to get to it.

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