San Luis Obispo County residents often gear up for winter rainstorms with sandbags to prevent flood damage. But what should you do with them after the storm passes?
David LaCaro, Public Works Operations Manager for the City of Paso Robles, shared the safest ways to reuse and discard sandbags following a storm.
He stressed the importance of taking them out of the elements once the storm ends.
"Some folks, unfortunately, will leave the sandbags. They get tattered, they get broken up and they end up as microplastics in our stormwater runoff, which we want to avoid," LaCaro said.
Bringing the bags in earlier also extends their lifetime.
"If the sandbags are still good, store it around your property. Make sure that it's out of the sun so it doesn't deteriorate and you can use it again for the next wet weather,” LaCaro said.
Residents can reuse the sand before disposing of the bag in a garbage receptacle.
Some alternative uses for sand include:
- Gardening
- Outdoor projects
- Fill for holes/gullies
Sandbags should not be discarded in recycling bins.
According to the Paso Robles Solid Waste and Recycling Manager, if sandbags come in contact with hazardous material, they need to be disposed of at an approved site like the Paso Robles Landfill. The landfill charges a minimum of $35 for any items weighing less than a ton.
