There are 10 temporary debris collection sites and more than 350 subcontractors that are on hand to pick up debris from Hurricane Beryl and the Derecho.
So far, more than 1.1 million cubic yards of vegetation have been piled, chopped up, and turned to mulch.
The debris at collection sites comes from neighborhoods around Houston.
“It makes you happy they’re coming for the limbs,” One woman who lives on the Near Northside said.
She said they had been waiting for debris pickup since the Derecho on May 16.
“The tree limbs, yesterday they picked up those, everyone who lives in this little neighborhood, they had tree limbs, came for some of it,” one woman told KHOU 11 News.
“To me, the hardest hit areas are the ones that have the oldest trees,” Solid Waste Management Director for the City of Houston Mark Wilfalk said.
Wilfalk said its crews and sub-contractors have collected more than one million cubic yards of debris, even though they lost five days of collections due to rain.
Wilfalk estimates 60 to 90 days for complete clean-up—which they want to finish soon.
“We don’t know what else is out there in the tropics. If we get hit again, this is only going to compound the issue. So that’s why we’ve got three prime [contractors] and over 350 subcontractors helping clean up this storm debris for us in addition to our own forces,” Wilfalk said.
Areas prone to flooding or heavy foot traffic are getting attention with the school year approaching.
A resident said with debris gone, she can enjoy walks down the street again.
“It makes it look a whole lot better without the tree limbs everywhere,” she said.
Anyone with debris is asked to call 3-1-1. You can also view the status of debris pickup in your neighborhood through the city’s waste collection map. The map also has interactive icons on street levels to show what work has been done so far.
“A lot of our residents may see a crew come around, cut up a bunch of trees and then pile that debris at the curbside about a day or two later, that collection will come down that street. So we’ll remove that debris from the curbside. So we like to allot about a good 30 solid days for that,” Wilfalk said.
Solid waste management estimates this may be a $100 million cleanup, but they could get some federal reimbursement. Staff made that request to Vice President Kamala Harris during her previous visit to Houston.
