Ames residents will be able to get rid of almost any unwanted household item Saturday.

The Resource Recovery Plant, 110 Center Ave., is holding a free day from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Story County residents will be able to dispose of their regular household waste free of charge at the plant.

Regular charges will still be in effect for tires, appliances and waste oil.

Many people take advantage of this opportunity to get rid of unwanted items, said Lorrie Hanson, principal clerk for the Resource Recovery Plant. More information about the program can be found at www.city.ames.ia.us.

“I think some people live for it,” she said. “I hate to say people are cheap, but people are cheap.”

The plant will accept furniture, carpet and lawn mowers, but they will be landfilled or recycled instead of processed for fuel.

“If we aren’t able to use it as fuel, it goes straight to the landfill,” Hanson said.

Wood scraps, bricks, concrete and other construction/demolition debris will not be accepted at the plant. Instead these materials must be disposed of at the Ames-Story County Environmental Landfill, 2101 Watt St.

Yard waste will also not be accepted at the plant but can be taken to the landfill’s yard waste site for free.

Gary Edwards, office worker at the Ames-Story County Environmental Landfill, said extra help will be at the site on Saturday to handle people coming in with their yard waste. “There will be a huge crowd, especially if the weather is nice,” he said.