About Environmental Management

Charleston County Environmental Management (CCEM) manages the collection of recycling and disposal of solid waste at the Bees Ferry Landfill. CCEM provides education and outreach to inform communities about proper solid waste disposal practices and procedures. CCEM has five divisions: Compost, Collections, Landfill, Material Recovery Facility (MRF), and Programs. These divisions manage specific tasks, including: collection, disposal, environmental enforcement, recycling and educational programs.

All residents of Charleston County are provided solid waste and recycling services by the County.

Functions

• Solid Waste Management
• Recycling Administration and Education
• Landfill Management
• Material Recovery Facility Management
• Compost and Mulch Operations
• Curbside and Convenience Center Collection
• Environmental Enforcement

Responsibilities

• Provide a residential recycling program servicing curbside collection to approximately 130,000 single family homes, with 16 drop site locations and 8 staffed convenience centers located primarily in the rural areas of the county. Curbside service occurs every two weeks.
• Provide a commercial business recycling program for qualified Charleston County businesses. Covered by the user fee, the program offers a weekly service (Monday through Friday).
• Provide a multi-family recycling program that is offered to apartment complexes, condominium complexes, and townhome communities. A weekly service is available and recycling roll carts and/or recycling dumpsters may be used on the property for collection of recycling from residents.
• Provide special event recycling equipment and education, including the rental of recycling collection bins.
• Provide school recycling programs and equipment to Charleston County schools in coordination and partnership with Charleston County School District (CCSD).
• Manage and operate the Bees Ferry Landfill, a 312-acre site with designated areas for debris brought in by local municipalities, and the Bees Ferry Compost Facility. Yard waste and commercial food waste are composted at this location by McGill Environmental Systems.
• Operate Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) collection and electronic waste collection at the 8 Convenience Center locations.
• Offer a paint re-blending program with re-blended paint for sale at $10 per five-gallon bucket at the Bees Ferry Road Convenience Center.
• Provide public information and community outreach to educate Charleston County residents on the department's programs and services.
• Enforce the county beautification (nuisance) and illegal dumping ordinances by investigation of violations and citizen's complaints in the unincorporated areas, Ravenel, Meggett and Public Service Districts.
• Oversee bidding and contract administration, in cooperation with the Charleston County Procurement Department, of rural franchise curbside collection of garbage, dry trash and yard waste in the unincorporated areas of East Cooper, Johns Island and the northern part of the county.

Frequently Asked Questions

For additional recycling-specific FAQs, please visit this webpage.

History

In July 1970, Charleston County Council created a task force which developed a solid waste plan. A year later, the S.C. General Assembly approved an act establishing a solid waste system for Charleston County.

Between 1971 and 1989, the Public Works Department operated two landfills - one for disposal of dry trash and white goods and another which received shredded garbage from the Romney Street Solid Waste processing plant. The County purchased the Bees Ferry Road Landfill to receive excess shredded garbage. Today, Charleston County operates a municipal solid waste landfill and a construction and demolition debris landfill, both permitted by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), at our Bees Ferry Road facility. It receives dry trash and construction debris and is now the site of County compost and mulch production.

The Montenay Incinerator (formerly Foster Wheeler) is a waste-to-energy facility located near Spruill Avenue in North Charleston and has been in operation since Nov. 1, 1989. This approach of converting solid waste to energy eliminated the need for the Romney Street solid waste shredding facility, which remained closed after Hurricane Hugo and was officially closed on Jan. 1, 1990.

Recycling began as a pilot program with sorting conducted at the Public Works Headquarters in 1989. Curbside recycling began in 1991, and the original solid waste shredding facility was retrofitted to a recovered material processing facility.

A separate Solid Waste Department was created in 1994. Today, the County provides residents with solid waste disposal and recycling services. Manned convenience centers provide garbage and trash disposal and recycling services to citizens residing in the County's rural and unincorporated areas.

In 2009, the Solid Waste and Recycling Department's name changed to Environmental Management.

At the end of 2009, the Monteney Incinerator stopped receiving trash from Charleston County.

In 2020, Charleston County’s new, state-of-the-art recycling center opened.

Common Terms

Brown Goods - Bulky wastes such as furniture.

C & D (Construction and Demolition Debris) - Also known as dry trash. Discarded solid waste resulting from construction, remodeling, repair and demolition of structures, road construction and land clearing. Included are bricks, trees and stumps, concrete, masonry materials, soil, rock, lumber, paving materials and road spoils.

Recycling - Any process by which materials, which would have otherwise become solid waste, are collected, separated or processed and reused or returned to use in the form of raw materials or products.

White Goods - Appliances such as refrigerators, washing machines, dryers and stoves. These items must be taken to the Bees Ferry Landfill for disposal.

Drop sites - Recycling dumpsters placed in different locations throughout the county that are used to collect recyclables. Drop sites are un-manned.

Bins - Smaller containers used in homes, businesses and at events to collect recyclables. They come in 22-gallon size and are intended for internal collection only; CCEM does not service these at the curb in most instances.

Roll Carts - The recycling roll carts are 95-gallon size and are on wheels with a handle and a lid. Roll carts are part of the All-In-One program where all recyclable materials (paper, cardboard, glass, plastic bottles, aluminum cans, etc.) can be combined in one container rather than separating materials.

Links

Municipalities

City of Charleston
City of Folly Beach
City of North Charleston
City of Isle of Palms
Town of Awendaw
Town of Hollywood
Town of James Island
Town of Kiawah Island
Town of Lincolnville
Town of McClellanville
Town of Meggett
Town of Mount Pleasant
Town of Ravenel
Town of Rockville
Town of Seabrook Island
Town of Sullivan's Island

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