Umatilla Garbage Collection Switching To Thursday

    Garbage customers in the City of Umatilla will soon see their collection day shift from Tuesday to Thursday. The move is part of a larger amendment made to the contract between the city and its hauler, GFL Environmental, that will also see a hike in charges to the city.
   An amended contract was approved during a meeting of the Umatilla City Council on Tuesday, December 6.
   The city had previously agreed to an increase charged by GFL, brought about due to increased fuel, labor, and other charges being experienced by the hauler. In addition, the hauler sought to move its collection day as part of an asset allocation program that sees it have more equipment available on Thursday.
   GFL recently ceased serving unincorporated Lake County around Umatilla, which it also collected on Tuesday. As a result, the firm sought to move Umatilla's day to later in the week as part of an asset allocation program.     The change is expected to take place shortly after the first of the year, with a wide-ranging program being discussed to educate customers about the pending switch.
   “Is there going to be some heartache? Yes,” said GFL representative Skip McCall during the meeting. But he added that the switch will allow the company to have more equipment available to Umatilla and that once the change is fully undertaken, should improve service in town.
   The city’s contract with GFL runs through January of 2026.