SAIPAN — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is asking residents to separate storm debris into distinct piles, saying the sorting helps recovery crews clear neighborhoods faster as the Marianas rebuilds from Super Typhoon Sinlaku.
Speaking at Northern Marianas College, Gary Lammers, a debris subject matter expert with the Army Corps, demonstrated how debris should be staged for collection. He said separated material lets crews recover faster and pick up far more in each pass.
Lammers outlined the categories crews are collecting. Vegetative material should be kept on its own. Metals, including roofing tin and the metal shelves pulled from classrooms and the library, form a separate pile. Construction and demolition debris such as lumber, sheetrock and concrete should be staged together. Electronic waste covers solar panels, computers, office equipment and smaller electronic devices.
Household hazardous materials, which include oils, paints, solvents and household cleaners, must be kept apart from the other streams, Lammers said. He asked residents not to mix bags of household garbage into the construction, metal or vegetative piles, saying mixed loads slow collection for everyone.
Lammers thanked the community for its cooperation on behalf of the Army Corps and its partners, repeating the campaign’s message that sorting better lets crews recover faster.