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Town of Gorham to Transition to Automated Curbside Collection – Fall 2026! 

June 2026 Waste & Recycle Cart Collection System Update
Posted on: June 24, 2026 - 6:57am
Trash-Mechanical Arm Transition

The current contract with Casella (the Town’s Waste Hauler) is a manual collection method where the helper on the back of the truck hops off the truck as it drives down the road and manually throws trash and recycling into the hopper. The new contract will shift away from manual collection due to many factors such as labor, safety, efficiency, and contractor requirements. With the new system, a truck equipped with a mechanical arm will lift trash and recycling carts provided by the Town.  

Transition to begin in the Fall of 2026. What this means: 

  • Each eligible residence will receive two (2), 65-gallon carts, one for trash, and one for recycling. These carts are expected to be assembled and delivered to each residence beginning mid-August to early September. 
  • The Pay-As-You-Throw Tag Program will stop once all carts have been delivered, and the new system starts; however, you will be required to use tags until the time of transition. The cost of the collection service will be built into the property tax base moving forward. 
  • Single sort recycling will remain the same (all recyclable materials will be combined in one cart to be sorted at Ecomaine) and trash will be bagged in a trash bag of your choosing, tied and placed in your trash cart.  
  • The Town’s current schedule is a four-day collection week, Monday – Thursday. This will be changing to a five-day collection schedule, Monday - Friday. More information to come as Casella and Town staff work through these schedule details. 
  • You will still be required to have trash and recycling curbside by 7AM on your day of collection. 

The Casella App: Recycle 101. The app (available for both Android and Apple devices) allows users to see their scheduled collection day and important information regarding collection to include holidays or weather delays. Citizens can receive reminders about their collection day, special collection events, learn how to dispose of items not accepted at the curb, report missed collections and other other issues that could be encountered. 

As more information becomes available, we will post it on the Gorham Public Works Facebook page (facebook.com/GorhamMEPublicWorksDepartment/), Town Website (gorhammaine.gov), and articles in the Gorham Times. 

Please reach out to the Public Works office with any questions you may have; we are happy to answer them!