As Clay County rolls out new waste services, some are concerned about the company’s past problems in St. Johns County

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – In Clay County, waste provider FCC Environmental Services is officially the new waste service.

The company completed its first waste collection on Tuesday.

MORE: New trash service begins Oct. 1 in Clay County. Here’s what you need to know about collecting your waste

This comes after St. Johns County abruptly terminated its contract with the company over the summer after thousands of complaints in just a few weeks.

RELATED | ‘Our technology failed’: Waste supplier is under scrutiny as it moves to take over Clay County

The bags in Lee Fuller’s driveway show how big his family is.

“Seven to eight people are sitting here. We have a big family, we have to eat, and there are kids and diapers and stuff. It’s just a lot. Some of that is my fault, but I mean you can’t expect me to be able to go from that to one,” he said.

Speaking of cans, a new trash can will cost him and everyone else in the county who needs more space.

The county website says you can lease a 95-gallon can for $66 or a 65-gallon can for $61.

That’s in addition to the additional $34 per year that Fuller pays FCC Environmental Services for trash collection.

The same company was laid off in St. Johns County, where vultures spent days picking trash left on the sidewalk.

Before Sarah Arnold let the company go, the St. Johns County Commission chairman addressed the community on Facebook.

“We have lost confidence in the FCC’s ability to provide accurate data and provide services in good faith,” she said.

Afterward, an FCC representative spoke at a Clay County Commission meeting about what happened.

“Our technology failed and why did it fail? We are now investigating that,” said Vice President of Business Development Charles Merkley.

The I-TEAM reached out to Clay County Commissioners regarding their decision to move forward with FCC.

They sent us this statement in support of their support, saying:

“The province has worked closely with FCC Environmental Services for months to ensure the transition to the new trash and yard waste service occurs at the level we all expect. We encourage our residents to visit our website, claycountygov.com, for any questions regarding the new service. At the top of the page is a banner with a direct link to frequently asked questions.

There are twenty-seven counties in Florida with a population of 200,000 or more (Clay is listed at 232,439). Of those 27 counties, 23 use ASL (85%) and 4 use manual trucks (15%).

Currently, solid waste assessments are $324/year. As of October 1, 2024, the rate will be $358/year. This is an increase of $34/year. This is billed annually as a non-ad valorem assessment on the provincial tax bill.

Residents who have not received a new can can still place their waste out in their old containers or bags on the new collection day, and FCC will collect it until their new can is delivered.”

For perspective, the I-TEAM requested data from other counties that use FCC.

Data in Orange County shows that over the past eight and a half years, the FCC has completed more than 162,302,400 collections with 43,435 complaints, which equates to just over 0.02% complaints per collection.

In Hillsborough County, where the FCC serves 123,285 residential units, 2,200 complaints were received between May and June of this year.

Former Clay County Commissioner Ronnie Robinson said he would have stayed away from the company.

“I think people are very unhappy because they feel like they’re paying more money and getting less service,” he said.

FCC collects trash and yard waste. Curbside recycling will no longer be available under the new agreement due to “unprecedented cost increases” for residents.

Fuller hopes what happened in St. Johns County won’t be repeated in his neighborhood.

“I don’t like that they’ve switched to just expecting people with big families, what should they do?” he said.

News4JAX requested an interview with FCC Environmental Services about the transition to Clay County, but did not hear back.