To view the video message from Mayor Edgington, click on the link at the bottom of this transcription.
Hello, I’m Roy Edgington, Mayor of Fernley. I wanted to take a few minutes to cover some important topics that have come up as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We understand this crisis has had a ripple effect on all of our lives. Everything from how we purchase our groceries, how we take care of our children, and also, how we take care of our homes. As a result of the pandemic, we saw folks hoarding essential household items, such as toilet paper.
One of the unintended consequences from that was an uptick in the use of so-called flushable wipes. Many of you have probably seen the photos circulated from one of our lift stations here in Fernley. Our lift stations and sewer plant have become inundated with items being flushed down the toilet that should NEVER be flushed. Please, please only flush toilet paper and household waste. I know there are lots of new products out there, things that claim to be flushable, but they are not. When you flush these items, it has a direct impact to our sewer system. The City has to purchase new parts, incur unexpected costs and labor as a result of this. We are asking our citizens to please be mindful – this is one particular thing where you have the ability to have a direct impact. Please do not flush anything other than toilet paper. All other items should be disposed of in your household trash.
As most of you are probably aware by now, the Waste Management Fernley Transfer Station is currently closed to the public. We know this is an inconvenience to our residents. City staff has been in constant contact and working with Waste Management during this crisis. We do understand Waste Management’s directive to protect their employees. For residents needing to dispose of waste, the closest open facility is the Lockwood Landfill. It is open during regular business hours: 8 AM - 5 PM Monday through Saturday. Due to new social distancing and safety measures CASH IS NOT ACCEPTED at this time, credit and debit is accepted. Waste Management customers are encouraged to update their contact information at www.WM.com for timely alerts by email, text or voicemail; customers can also get help with their account by calling 775-575-4964, or email CSNevada@wm.com or online chat at WM.com.
Waste Management is continuing regular curbside collection of containerized trash. Collection drivers have PPE, however, for safety reasons they are maximizing the use of mechanical arms to collect trash. Material that is not in a container can’t be grabbed with the arm and will not be collected at this time.
Thank you for your time, we are all in this together, stay safe and stay healthy.