Trash and recycling

The City of Humble does not collect residential garbage. Every household here arranges its own service with a private hauler.

The city says so by leaving it out. Public Works lists what it does handle, and solid waste is not on the list: "water, wastewater, streets, drainage, parks, animal control, code enforcement, capital improvement programs" and maintenance of city buildings and vehicles.¹ The solid waste ordinance points the same way, telling residents to follow "the guidelines and requirements as published by the customer's solid waste operator".²

That is why neighbors put cans out on different days, and why nobody can name "the trash day" for Timberwood. It surprises people moving in from Houston or from a MUD district, where collection comes bundled.

Licensing

Under Article 12.03 of the city code, hauling household trash for money inside the city limits is against the law unless the city has licensed you: "Only a licensed waste transporter or hauler shall transport residential or commercial waste."² No hauler has an exclusive deal with the city, so the choice is open, but it should be a choice among licensed operators.²

When cans go out

The city code sets the outside edges, and they are wider than most people think. A can cannot go to the curb earlier than 6:00 PM the evening before pickup.² A licensed hauler cannot collect between 8:00 PM and 7:00 AM, so 7:00 AM is the earliest a truck can legally come.² Your own hauler can be stricter than that, and most are.

Haulers serving Humble

The senior rate has a catch. Eastex charges $30 a month plus tax at 65 and over, with proof, and the discount is "limited to one 50 gallon or less trash can per qualifying household each pickup".⁴ One can, not three. A household that puts out more than that is on the regular rate.

Eastex is listed first because it is the only one publishing an actual residential price, not as a recommendation. Nothing on its site says the company supplies a can, and it links to retailers for the cans it will accept, so plan on buying your own.¹⁰

Still needed

The real answer differs street by street, and a dozen neighbors can settle in a week what no amount of searching will produce:

1. Which hauler, and what it costs, monthly or quarterly
2. Which day they come
3. Whether the hauler supplies the can
4. Whether recycling is included, and how often
5. How bulk and heavy trash work, and whether they cost extra
6. Any hauler worth avoiding

With those answers this becomes a real comparison table of prices against names, which does not exist anywhere on the internet today.

Hauling it yourself

WM operates the Atascocita Recycling and Disposal Facility on Wilson Road, which matters after a remodel or a storm. It keeps an area set aside "for local residents and businesses to drop off recyclables".¹¹

See also

• Water and sewer
• Who to call