Katie Hardesty is an operations manager at Recology Western Oregon.

Katie Hardesty, the operations manager at Recology Western Oregon, knows just about everything about trash and recycle pickup across the North Coast.

Recology, a San Francisco, California, based waste management and recycling company, has been Hardesty’s employer for over a decade. The single mother of two began her journey at the company as a driver after moving to Hammond from the McMinnville area.

As a driver, Hardesty spent many early mornings on collection routes up and down the coast. Over the years, she gained experience operating trucks, connected with the community and even found a pet.

“I found a kitten on route one time. That’s always fun when something pops up like that … I was just doing a route down at Tongue Point and it came running out of the bushes at the truck,” she said.

In September, Hardesty was promoted from operations supervisor to operations manager. She said the transition from driver to management was a seamless one.

“I knew going into the supervisor position the majority of the routes. I have done them all (and) seen them all. I know the whole county road map in my head. So it was easy to step into that role,” she said.

Part of her responsibility as an operations manager is to be involved in the community. One of the events she enjoys participating in is Seaside’s Parade of Lights. “We light up the truck, and then everybody gets on and we dress up, and so that’s been fun,” she said. “I just love being part of the community.”

Dan Blue, the government and community relations manager at Recology Western Oregon, described Hardesty’s work as a driver and manager as an example for others.

“She is constantly trying to improve her skills and learn through experience, and … from my perspective, she’s earned the respect of her staff,” he said. “Just by hard work and trying to understand the business better and putting herself out there.”

Recology Western Oregon serves residents and businesses in Astoria, Warrenton, Gearhart, Seaside and Cannon Beach. Some commonly mistaken items put into recycling are plastic clamshells, takeout containers, coffee pods and diapers.

“I know recycling is not the same across all of Oregon. So a lot of people will come out from the Portland metro area or different states to vacation, and then completely recycle wrong. So we get a lot of trash during the summer months in the recycling,” Hardesty said.

Improper recycling hinders the process and can cause issues for machines and sometimes trucks. One of the most hazardous materials are lithium batteries — which can cause spontaneous fires in waste collection trucks — and should not be tossed in the trash or recycle bins.

Other materials that can contaminate a recycling load are containers of paint and motor oil. “You’ve got 300 or 400 neighbors who have diligently gone to the effort to put the right thing in the right bin. One person can kind of ruin the whole thing. So contamination really is a big deal for us. And so most people want to do the right thing,” Blue said.