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Waste and Recycling

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Dale Henderson
Director

Phone: (863) 284-4319
Toll Free: (800) 780-5346

Email: dalehenderson@polk-county.net

Service Requests: PolkWasteWise@polk-county.net

Address:
10 Environmental Loop S.
Winter Haven, FL 33880

Business Office Hours:
Monday through Friday:
8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Household Hazardous Waste
Hours of Operation:
Friday: 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Saturday: 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

North Central Transfer Station and Landfill
3131 K-Ville Avenue, Auburndale, FL 33823
Hours of Operation:
Monday through Friday: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Saturday: 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

What Day is My Collection Day?

To find out your scheduled collection day(s), or for more information, please visit Find Your Collection Day or call (863) 284-4319.

About the Division

Polk County Waste and Recycling’s mission is to provide world-class service to Polk County residents, to add value to our employees, to protect the environment and reduce operating cost through the effective use of resources. Waste and Recycling has 50 employees in the areas of landfill operations, administration, engineering and customer care. We can help answer questions about trash pick up schedules, yard waste and garbage collection days. You can also report missed trash garbage, recycling and yard waste pick up to us.

The division performs a number of key functions including:

  • Landfill management
  • Residential curbside collection facilitation and contract management
  • Household hazardous waste processing

In addition, the division is responsible for communicating information from the State regarding disposal, recycling and solid waste management. Need information about the Polk County recycling program or recycling TVs, computers, electronics? We can help!

Service Updates

The Waste and Recycling Division encourages customers to submit service requests online to expedite response and to use the information on Polk’s website for your convenience. We are dedicated to providing you with as many services as possible during this time.

Submit a service request online for:

  • Bulk pickup
  • Reporting a damaged or stolen roll cart
  • Reporting a missed collection
  • Other requests

You can also download the Polk Waste Wise App:

Polk Waste Wise App for Apple
Polk Waste Wise App for Android

Customer service representatives are available by phone, but due to reduced staffing, wait times could be longer than usual and we appreciate your patience during this time.

Holidays

Six holidays that potentially impact landfill hours and residential collection schedules:

  • New Years Day
  • Memorial Day
  • Fourth of July
  • Labor Day
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas Day

Note: For residential collection, if a holiday occurs on Saturday or Sunday, then the collection schedule is not affected by that holiday.

The North Central Landfill will be closed on the following holidays:

  • Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, 2024; normal operations will resume Tuesday, May 28, 2024.
  • Independence Day, Thursday, July 4, 2024; normal operations will resume Friday, July 5, 2024.
  • Labor Day, Monday, Sep. 2, 2024; normal operations will resume Tuesday, Sep. 3, 2024.
  • Veterans Day, Monday, Nov. 11, 2024; normal operations will resume Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024.
  • Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024; normal operations will resume Friday, Nov. 29, 2024.
  • Christmas Day, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024; normal operations will resume Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024.

Holidays that may impact your residential collection:

  • Memorial Day, Monday, May 27, 2024
    • Monday customers will be collected on Tuesday, May 28, 2024.
    • Tuesday customers will be collected on Wednesday, May 29, 2024.
    • Wednesday customers will be collected Thursday, May 30, 2024.
    • Thursday customers will be collected on Friday, May 31, 2024.
    • Friday customers will be collected Saturday, June 1, 2024.
  • Independence Day, Thursday, July 4, 2024
    • Thursday customers will be collected on Friday, July 5, 2024.
    • Friday customers will be collected Saturday, July 6, 2024.
  • Labor Day, Monday, September 2, 2024
    • Monday customers will be collected on Tuesday, September 3, 2024.
    • Tuesday customers will be collected on Wednesday, September 4, 2024.
    • Wednesday customers will be collected Thursday, September 5, 2024.
    • Thursday customers will be collected on Friday, September 6, 2024.
    • Friday customers will be collected Saturday, September 7, 2024.
  • Veterans Day, Monday, November 11, 2024
    • Monday customers for yard waste and trash will be collected on the following Monday, November 18, 2024.
    • No change to other collection days.
  • Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 28, 2024
    • Thursday customers for yard waste and trash will be collected on the following Thursday, December 5, 2024.
    • No change to other collection days.
  • Christmas Day, Wednesday, December 25, 2024
    • Wednesday customers for yard waste and trash will be collected on the following Wednesday, January 1, 2025.
    • No change to other collection days.

Meet some of our Team