The Sanitation Department is comprised of 19 full time employees in four sections: Landfill Operations, Solid Waste, Recycling, and Mosquito Control.
Landfill Operations - includes an active landfill for all residential and commercial garbage, long term care and maintenance of three closed landfills, a waste tire storage facility, and two solid waste/recycling facilities.
Solid Waste - includes transporting waste and recyclables from the solid waste/recycling facilities and other collection sites, and the maintenance of eight waste oil sites.
Recycling - tracks and reports all recyclables collected in the County, and provides recycling education to residents and businesses.
Mosquito Control - includes mosquito surveillance (trapping, quantifying, and identifying mosquitoes), nighttime spraying (seasonal), and daytime larvaciding.
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Landfill Operations - includes an active landfill for all residential and commercial garbage, long term care and maintenance of three closed landfills, a waste tire storage facility, and two solid waste/recycling facilities.
Solid Waste - includes transporting waste and recyclables from the solid waste/recycling facilities and other collection sites, and the maintenance of eight waste oil sites.
Holiday Garbage, Yard Trash and Recycling Schedule - New Years Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are County and Waste Pro holidays. If your pick up day falls on one of these days, the next day will be your pick up day. All other pick ups that week will fall back one day. (Example: Monday to Tuesday, Tuesday to Wednesday, Wednesday to Thursday, Thursday to Friday, and Friday to Saturday for the remainder of that week only.)
Mosquito Control - includes mosquito surveillance (trapping, quantifying, and identifying mosquitoes), nighttime spraying (seasonal), and daytime larvaciding.
The Mosquito Control Division of Putnam County's Sanitation Department is one of the agencies charged with protecting the public's health from disease carrying mosquitoes.
Putnam County utilizes an environmentally sensitive program of integrated arthropod pest management to control mosquitoes.
Integrated arthropod pest management is the utilization of available measures, including, but not limited to, the use of biological control agents, pesticides, and source reduction to control arthropods without an unreasonable adverse effect on the environment.
Putnam County's mosquito control program is funded by the Putnam County Board of County Commissioners general fund and a State of Florida grant.
Much of Putnam County's natural beauty is found in its rivers, lakes, and thousands of acres of freshwater wetlands. Unfortunately, many of Putnam's swamps and wetlands, both privately and state owned, are breeding grounds for pestiferous, and sometimes disease-carrying mosquitoes.
Treating Putnam's vast wetlands by aerial mosquito spraying is neither affordable nor environmentally recommended. Mosquito control in Putnam is focused on protecting the public living in rural and urban residential areas.
To serve the most Putnam County residents for the least amount of public funds, mosquito adulticiding is limited to nighttime ground ULV (ultra low volume) spraying from paved and unpaved public roads serving residential areas. Those Individuals and businesses wishing their private or commercial property to be sprayed should contact Clarke Environmental Mosquito Control directly at 386-329-1279 for a quotation.
Bob Hatton is currently Putnam's Mosquito Control Program Director. Bob is responsible for overseeing all mosquito control activities to comply with Florida Administrative Rule 5E-13.
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) recommends the following actions to protect your home and your family from possible mosquito borne diseases such as West Nile Virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis, and St. Louis Encephalitis.
1. Dusk to dawn. Stay indoors after dusk and before dawn. Most mosquitoes are night-time feeders.
2. Drain standing water. The majority of mosquitoes in your yard probably came from within 1,500 feet of your home, so check for standing water in boats, gutters, tires, dog bowls, bird baths, swimming pools, ditches, etc. and cut tall grass. Draining standing water at least twice a week will prevent mosquito breeding and reduce the number of mosquitoes in your yard.
3. Dress. Wear light color clothing, preferably long sleeve shirts, blouses, and pants when possible.
4. Deet. Spray clothing with mosquito repellent containing Deet before going outside for activities. Follow directions on can or bottle.
5. Doors. We've added a fifth "D" to the CDC"s list, DOORS. Keep screened doors and screened windows in good repair and tightly closed.
To request spraying call Putnam County Mosquito Control at 386-329-0397 Monday thru Friday between the hours of 8:30am and 5pm.
All mosquito service requests phoned into 386-329-0397 are logged into a VCMS (Vector Control Management System) database. Each service request is assigned to one of 19 Putnam County spray zones.
Service requests are assigned location numbers and GPS codes for mapping and tracking . Service requests confirming the presence of standing water are investigated immediately for remediation and larviciding.
Remediation may require the draining of artificial breeding containers such as birdbaths or boats, the treating of contaminated swimming pools, the cutting of tall grass, or the removal of tires or yard trash. Source reduction activities, such as the clearing of blocked roadside ditches and culverts, may also require assistance from other Putnam County agencies.
When multiple mosquito service requests are received from the same street or neighborhood, the area is inspected for potential breeding sites. Adult mosquito landing rate counts and CDC light trap counts are taken and spray zones with verified adult mosquito counts are assigned for ULV nighttime spraying. State regulations require confirmation of elevated mosquito activity prior to ULV spraying
Putnam County utilizes several methods of mosquito surveillance to determine the presence of pestiferous and potentially disease vectoring mosquitoes.
Mosquito Pool Monitoring
Mosquito breeding sites such as sewer wastewater traps, roadside detention ponds, roadside ditches, and sewage treatment plants are checked (dipped) for mosquito larvae.
CDC Mosquito Light Traps
Eight Co2 emitting CDC mosquito light traps, strategically placed throughout Putnam County, are monitored weekly for mosquito counts. An additional trap is used to verify service requests called into 386-329-0397. Mosquitoes are collected in traps by location, counted and identified by species. Counts are logged into a database to detect counts and trends in mosquito populations. State regulations require the confirmed presence of 25 or more adult mosquitoes in a trap overnight as a justification of adulticide chemical spraying. The Florida record for the most mosquitoes caught in a CDC trap overnight was over 1-million mosquitoes after a recent hurricane.
Sentinel Chicken Flocks
Putnam County Mosquito Control maintains eight flocks, each consisting of six healthy adult domestic hens. Sentinel chicken flocks are strategically located throughout Putnam County to serve all spray zones. Sentinel chickens are much like the "canary in the coal mine" and warn public health officials of impending danger to humans as they attract hundreds, sometimes thousands, of nighttime mosquito bites.
Each week blood is drawn from the sentinel chickens and shipped overnight to the state blood lab in Tampa. Chicken blood is tested for the presence of West Nile Virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis, and St. Louis Encephalitis. When a chicken positive test is confirmed an alert goes out to Clarke Environmental Mosquito Control to dispatch ULV (ultra low volume) nighttime spray trucks to focus on the area where disease vectoring mosquitoes have been detected.
Landing Rate Counts
One of the oldest and most controversial methods of mosquito surveillance is the use of landing rate counts.
The number of mosquitoes landing on a technician at a particular location during a timed period is an acceptable method of verifying the presence of mosquitoes and justifying the use of ULV adulticide spraying.
During the service request inspection process, standing water is checked (dipped) for the presence of infant mosquito larvae. When mosquito larvae are found, a safe, biological, bacterial larvicide liquid or granule BTI is applied. The larvicide we utilize in Putnam County was developed specifically for mosquito larvae and is approved by the EPA as not harmful to fish, wildlife, or to the water supply.
Depending upon ditch and pond water retention characteristics, Putnam County Mosquito Control technicians may now release mosquito larvae eating minnows, called Gambusia Affinis, instead of applying expensive larvicides. Each mosquito minnow eats over 100 mosquito larvae per day.
Adulticiding
When phoned-in mosquito service requests are confirmed by trap counts of 25 or more mosquitoes per night, per trap, or increased landing rate counts, or sentinel chickens testing positive for West Nile Virus, Eastern Equine or St. Louis Encephalitis verify an increase in the adult mosquito population, ULV spray trucks are scheduled to be dispatched to the area and surrounding neighborhoods.
Currently, Clarke Environmental Mosquito Control, the world’s largest mosquito control company, is under contract with Putnam County to provided ULV night-time spraying on public property such as roads, playgrounds, etc. Clarke ULV trucks are not permitted to enter gated property or spray private roads or driveways.
Clarke ULV trucks spray between sundown and 11pm when most mosquitoes are flying, but most bees have gone safely back inside their hives and butterflies have returned to their resting spots high in the tree tops. Clarke sprays Putnam County with an EPA approved, environmentally friendly Permethrin based BIOMIST 4+4 chemical. Permethrin is derived from the oil of Chrysanthemum buds.
All Clarke ULV spray applications are GPS tracked and mapped by truck number, driver, type and amount of chemical used, speed of truck, day of month, time of day.
Putnam County Mosquito Control has a 30 minute Power Point illustrated presentation explaining the history, life cycle, and control of mosquitoes in Florida.
This science-filled presentation is tailored to grades 5-12 life-science classes, but is also suitable as an informative, entertaining presentation for civic clubs.
For information about scheduling a speaker call Karen Adams at 329-0389
Recycling - tracks and reports all recyclables collected in the County, and provides recycling education to residents and businesses.
Please Help Increase Putnam County's Recycling Rate
The Sanitation Department, along with Waste Pro, is working hard to increase the County's recycling rate. We would appreciate County wide participation to help achieve our goal. You can help by recycling instead of throwing away. Here is how you can participate.
Place these items curbside in your blue bin; newspapers, magazines, catalogs, phone books, beverage & food cans, aerosol cans, plastic beverage & soap bottles, and corrugated cardboard OR you can take these items to one of our convenient drop-off sites at...
Central Landfill - accepts all items mentioned above.
John's Metals - accepts aluminum cans and scrap metals.
Hill's Hardware - accepts aluminum cans.
Humane Society Thrift Center & Bostwick Community Center - accepts newspaper.
Kay Larkin Airport, Chiappini's Gas Station, and Long's Garage - accepts oil.
Cans and bottles should be emptied, rinsed, have tops removed, and flattened to save space. Cardboard should be cut in 2' X 3' lengths, flattened, and placed under the blue bin if necessary.
You can also help by spreading the word about recycling.
Recyclable items accepted in blue bin curbside collection:
Aluminum Cans
Metal Cans - including empty aerosol cans
Plastic Bottles
Newspapers (and inserts)
Magazines / Catalogs
Phone Books
Corrugated cardboard (flatten and place under blue bin)
All Paper Products including junk mail and paperboard
Homeowners: Call (386) 328-5445 or 1-800-852-6132 to request your blue bin.
Central Landfill Recycling Drop-off Site 140 County Landfill Rd -off Hwy 17 - 4 miles North of Palatka
Open: Mon - Sat 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Closed New Years Day, Memorial Day,
4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day
Recyclable Items Accepted at Central Landfill:
Aluminum Cans
Metal Cans - including empty aerosol cans
Plastic Bottles Newspapers (and inserts)
Magazines
Phone Books
Glass Bottles (green, brown, clear)
Waste Oil
Waste Oil Filters
Automotive Batteries
Scrap Metal
White Goods (appliances)
Propane Tanks (empty)
Waste Tires (with or without rims)
Yard Debris (tree trimmings, branches, limbs, stumps)
Huntington Solid Waste/Recycle Center 1551 County Rd 308 - on C.R. 308 - 4 miles West of Crescent City
Open: Monday - Sat 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Closed New Years Day, Memorial Day,
4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day
Recyclable Items Accepted At Huntington Recycling Center:
Aluminum Cans
Metal Cans - including empty aerosol cans
Plastic Bottles
Glass (green, brown, clear)
Waste Oil
Waste Oil Filters
Automotive Batteries
Scrap Metal
White Goods (appliances)
Propane Tanks (empty)
Waste Tires (with or without rims)
Automotive Batteries
Scrap Metal
White Goods (appliances)
Propane Tanks (empty)
Waste Tires (with or without rims)
Yard Debris (tree trimmings, branches, limbs, stumps)
Interlachen Solid Waste / Recycle Center 111 Hickory Lane - off Hwy 20 - 1 mile West of Interlachen
Open: Monday - Sat 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Closed New Years Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day
Recyclable Items Accepted At Interlachen Recycling Center:
Aluminum Cans
Metal Cans - including empty aerosol cans
Plastic Bottles
Glass (green, brown, clear)
Waste Oil
Waste Oil Filters
Automotive Batteries
Scrap Metal
White Goods (appliances)
Propane Tanks (empty)
Waste Tires (with or without rims)
So...Why Should We Recycle?
Because:
Recycling helps protect our environment
Recycling helps conserve our natural resources
Recycling helps conserse our nation's energy
Recycling helps conserve valuable landfill space
Recycling helps control roadside litter
and
Recycling is Fun!
Whenever possible, buy items that are either recyclable or made from recycled materials.
Environmental Education
RECYCLING FACILITY TOURS: Interested groups may take a tour of our recycling facilities and County Landfill. Call (386) 329-0466.
PUTNAM RECYCLES PRESENTATION: If your class or group would like to have a speaker give a Power Point presentation about the importance and benefits of recycling, call (386) 329-0466.
Is a joint project of:
The Putnam County Board of County Commissioners
The Putnam County Sanitation Department
Waste Pro
Keep Putnam Beautiful
The Citizens of Putnam County
