By Ellen Nunes

Winter is over at last and it’s time to clean out all that unwanted stuff that’s been piling up and get ready for summer. Luckily, the Clean Tahoe Program’s Annual Community Cleanup Day – known by locals as “Dump Day” — is June 5 from 8am-4pm at the South Tahoe Refuse Transfer Station at 2140 Ruth Ave. in South Lake Tahoe.

Every June, Clean Tahoe sponsors this community event where local residents can dispose of a truckload of unwanted household and bulk items for $5.

Clean Tahoe is a community-focused nonprofit organization committed to maintaining Lake Tahoe’s mountain beauty through litter and nuisance abatement in the city and El Dorado County through community education, and by giving residents the opportunity to be actively involved in keeping their neighborhoods clean.

In addition to the $5 per truckload Dump Day price, there are discounted prices for other items. Tire Amnesty Day, sponsored by El Dorado County Environmental Management in Placerville, is back this year. Up to nine tires per residential load can be dumped free. E-waste items such as computer monitors and televisions are free. Refrigerators, freezers and other items containing Freon, will cost $15 instead of their normal $36 each.

A maximum of 20 gallons per household of hazardous household materials, including oil for recycling, can be dumped free. Like last year, we will not be accepting needles (bagged or loose) or heavy construction-type items such as concrete, asphalt, roofing materials or dirt. Pine needles can be put out and picked up by STR curbside for no additional cost on regular trash days.

Every California resident coming through the line will receive a free six-pack of compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) courtesy of Sierra Pacific Power.

For this special June 5 event, the Transfer Station gates will close at 4pm instead of the usual 5pm to allow time to separate the large amount of items coming through the gates on this day. All vehicles in line at 4pm will be escorted inside and allowed to dump their loads. Once the gates are closed, late arrivals will be turned away.

This is a very popular community event, and residents need to plan ahead for a wait in line.

Community Cleanup Day is intended for residential dumping only. Commercial loads will pay regular fees and Douglas County residents will pay an extra $5 fee since they do not pay a yearly fee to support the Clean Tahoe Program.

Individual residents, or community groups who want to do something extra in the spirit of Community Cleanup Day can clean a community lot pre-selected by Clean Tahoe or pick one of their own. As a thank you, Clean Tahoe will provide a free Dump Day line pass, which allows the holder to bypass the line to dump all their items. The usual $5 gate fee is also waived.

For more details about Community Cleanup Day, to volunteer yourself or your group to clean a community lot, or for information on Clean Tahoe’s other programs and activities throughout the year, call the Clean Tahoe Program at (530) 544.4210.

Ellen Nunes is program manager for Clean Tahoe.