Notices went out this week to the first Richland County residents affected by significant changes to curbside recycling service.

By mid-February, 19,000 residents in the north-central and southeastern parts of unincorporated Richland County will have received big, lime green roll carts for recyclable materials, such as newspapers, plastic, cans and glass.

The new, 95-gallon roll carts will replace smaller red recycling bins. They will be emptied every other week.

Garbage will continue to be picked up weekly. The cost of service will not change.

Affected residents also must put yard debris such as leaves, grass clippings and twigs into trash bags or bins for pick up.

By 2015, all of the county’s 88,000 curbside garbage customers will convert from 18-gallon recycling bins to full-sized recycling roll carts.

-- Dawn Hinshaw