Buncombe County is set to transition to FCC Environmental Services for residential garbage and recycling services in unincorporated areas of Buncombe County, replacing the current solid waste provider, Waste Pro.
FCC was chosen as the top-ranked firm for this role, leading to the approval of a contract for residential solid waste collection that includes household garbage and recycling services. Any household that is currently a Waste Pro customer will need to sign up with FCC Environmental to ensure a smooth transition and avoid service disruption.
All current service levels will remain in place with FCC Environmental Services. These include weekly curbside collection of household garbage, recycling, and bulk waste, as well as scheduled services like appliance pick-up upon customer request. While most service days will remain the same, the time of service may change. FCC will communicate any changes in service days to their customers.
Dane Pederson, Solid Waste Director, expressed enthusiasm for the new partnership: “We are excited about this new partnership with FCC Environmental Services. While we do anticipate challenges with this transition, we will work to minimize and address issues as soon as possible.”
While this transition is underway, residents in unincorporated areas of Buncombe County are encouraged to sign up with FCC as soon as possible to be added to a pick-up route. As the Solid Waste Director emphasizes, “Trash is serious business. We know that this is a major transition for trash and recycling services in Buncombe County. We are working with Waste Pro and FCC to coordinate the moving parts of this transition, including equipment, staffing, routes, service days, and cart sizes. The process has been running smoothly thus far, and we anticipate continued progress as we move towards the date of the transition.”
Signing up with FCC does not require payment and you will not be asked for your personal information when you sign up with FCC. For more information, please visit Buncombe County Solid Waste. To sign up, visit https://fccenvironmental.com/buncombe-county/ or call (828) 820-7022.
Pricing structure details:
- Basic Service: Priced at $28.65 per month.
- Premium Service: Available at $59.00 per month. Premium Service includes additional driving beyond the pre-determined pick-up locations that may also require use of special equipment.?
- Additional Services: “Bear Carts” available for purchase at $320.00 or a monthly lease of $10.16, and additional carts with service at a monthly lease of $12.00.
We know the past few weeks have been tough as Buncombe County recovers from Hurricane Helene. As WastePro continues to access normal routes where possible and as we work towards full recovery, we are also resuming transition to our new trash and recycling pick-up service provider, FCC Environmental Services.
Waste Pro customers will need to sign up for service with FCC Environmental to continue household trash and recycling pick-up after January 1. We know it is really tough to add one more thing as we’re going through our disaster recovery response, but we ask you to get signed up now so your trash and recycling can be picked up in the new year.
If your trash cans currently have a Waste Pro logo, that means you need to subscribe to FCC by December 15, 2024, to avoid any service interruption. No payment is due when registering.
FCC will replace Waste Pro as the solid waste provider in unincorporated areas of Buncombe County. If your current trash can says Waste Pro, you will need to call (828) 820-7022 or visit the FCC website to subscribe by December 15, 2024 for service in order to avoid disruption of trash and recycling pickup. Basic service includes weekly trash pickup and bi-weekly recycling pickup.
Cost Breakdown (2025-26) Per Month:
Basic Service: $28.65
Premium Service: $59.00
Bulky Pickup Service and Disposal (per item): $25
Bear Carts (purchase): $320
Bear Carts (monthly lease): $10.16
Additional Cart with Service (monthly lease): $12.00
To learn more about what is inclued in each service, visit the FCC website.
See FAQs below to learn more!
Signing-up
When do I need to enroll to ensure that my trash and recycling will be picked up without interruption?
- Enroll today by visiting fccenvironmental.com/buncombe-county or calling (828) 820-7022. FCC begins servicing routes January 1, 2025 so you will need to enroll by December 15, 2024 to avoid any disruption in service.
I am not sure if I live in unincorporated Buncombe County or within City limits. Is there a way to know if I need to sign up?
- The quickest way to understand if you are located in unincorporated Buncombe County is to check the side of your garbage cart. If you have a Waste Pro cart, enroll for services at fccenvironmental.com/buncombe-county.
How will I know what my pickup schedule will be?
- Flyers are being mailed to customers which will detail their pickup schedule starting in November / December so that all customers have received their updated pickup schedule in advance.
Why are they changing from Waste Pro?
- Long story short – Waste Pro was going to raise rates, so Commissioners requested that we go out for proposals. FCC was the bidder with the lowest rates.
Cart Information
Will I receive new carts from FCC?
- Yes, FCC will issue new roll carts to each location that enrolls for service.
When will new carts be delivered?
- FCC is working with Toter to provide brand new carts to each customer that has enrolled in service. The delivery process will begin in mid December and will be completed before January 1, 2025.
I purchased a bear cart from Waste Pro. Will FCC continue to service my bear cart, or will I have to purchase a new bear cart?
- Good news! If you have already purchased a bear cart from Waste Pro, you can continue to use it. FCC will apply decal stickers to your existing cart so that our route driver will know to provide service.
If I request a bear cart, will I receive a cart for garbage and recycling?
- At this time, bear carts will be only available for garbage. Please request a bear cart upon enrolling with FCC. Bear carts will be delivered to those customers who have submitted a request.
Billing
Do I have to start making payments with FCC right now before service starts?
- Signing up with FCC does not require payment and you will not be asked for your personal information when you sign up with FCC.
I live in an HOA that is responsible for my collection service. Will the HOA need to submit an enrollment request for each home?
- FCC will have the ability to enroll an HOA under one main account that would then hold the service detail for all individual homes within the community. When signing up for service, just briefly explain the need to set up an HOA in the additional details section when submitting a service request.
I am currently billed for waste services through my HOA. Can the HOA be set up each home under one account?
- FCC will have the ability to invoice an HOA under one billable account, which would hold the service detail for all individual homes within the community.
Written by Buncombe County.