BY JIMMY LAWTONNorth Country This Week

OGDENSBURG -- Ogdensburg's yard waste cleanup program is underway and will continue until May 19.

Actual pickup will begin no later than May 1, but yard waste may be placed out now.

Yard waste may be placed between the edge of the street and the sidewalk or along the edge of the street if no sidewalk exists on the home owners' property. It is prohibited to place yard waste in the street.

The city has implemented some new changes due to a variety of reasons including staffing limitations, lack of compliance, growing costs and land fill that's filling up.

A large contributor to the changes was the state's decision to close the biomass facility at Fort Drum, according to some members of council.

Accepted waste includes grass clippings, leaves, brush and tree limbs less than 6 feet in length with limbs no more than 6 feet in diameter and live holiday trees.
Conversely, dirt, stumps root balls, oversized tree limbs, green waste mixed with rocks or hard fill and bagged green waste will not be accepted.

Those who place yard waste for pickup outside of those scheduled dates will be issued a notice. Violations will only be considered consecutive if they are within the same calendar year.

Additionally the pick up schedule was changed to remove the summer pickup which previously took place in July prior to the Seaway Festival.

Fall pickup will continue beginning the second weekend Sunday of October and continuing until the Sunday before Thanksgiving.

City residents will be able to drop off yard waste at the landfill located on outer Champlain Street between April 1 and Dec. 1, but a new fee will be implemented for larger trees and limbs dropped off there.

The fee for dropping off limbs in excess of 6 inches in diameter or 6 feet in length will be $50, per load for 6 cubic yards of less and $150 per load for 6 to 10 cubic yards and $35 per load for 10-14 cubic yards. The debris must come from within the city limits.

The landfill will be open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and further details can be found on Ogdensburg.org.