Town Seeks Councilor Feedback on New Solid Waste Plan
Photo: CalRecycle
Report on the Meeting of the Town Services and Outreach Committee, July 11, 2024
This meeting was held over Zoom and was recorded. It can be viewed here.
Present
Andy Steinberg (Chair, at large), Bob Hegner (District 5), Hala Lord and George Ryan (District 3), and Jennifer Taub (District 4). Council President Lynn Griesemer (District 2) was also present
Staff: Paul Bockelman (Town Manager) and Athena O’Keeffe (Clerk of the Council)
The Town Services and Outreach Committee (TSO) voted at their June 27 meeting to forward the waste hauler reform proposal, now entitled “Refuse Collection and Recyclable and Compostable Materials Bylaw” that they have been working on for the past two years to the full Town Council. Town Manager Paul Bockelman, however, was not present at that meeting, so the committee asked for his feedback. Currently, town residents contract individually with a waste hauler, or purchase a $125 permit, which allows them to take their trash and recycling to the town transfer station. The new proposal would have the town contract directly with the waste hauler in a competitive bidding process and offer “pay as you throw” pricing and curbside composting.
A request for information (RFI) last year yielded interest from three waste haulers, USA, Casella, and Republic, (see summary of RFI responses here) but no definite pricing was included in the information that they provided. TSO has requested that the town issue a request for proposals (RFP) to determine the cost and scope of the proposed program and to inform the rewriting of the general bylaw.
Bockelman told the committee that he had met with Council Clerk Athena O’Keeffe and Superintendent of Public Works Guilford Mooring about the proposed change in solid waste management. He informed TSO that the town has no staff to do the work of formulating the RFP because there are “too many things on our plate and this was not a priority that has been identified.” Therefore, he said, the council will have to approve funds to hire a consultant to issue the RFP and probably a second consultant to do outreach and education to the public. He also pointed out that two versions of the proposed bylaw change exist: a brief bylaw passed by the previous TSO committee and a more detailed one developed by former councilor Shalini Bahl Milne when she was a TSO member. Bockelman wanted clarity about what the council is asking the companies to bid on.
Bockelman laid out a possible timeline for implementing the program. He said that if the council allocated funds for a consultant in the fall, he hoped to issue the RFP in early 2025 and add any costs of the new process to the FY 2026 budget. He expected that the chosen company would need 6 to 12 months to implement the new system.
Jennifer Taub noted that this period before early 2026 offers time to educate the public about the changes. O’Keeffe asked whether the committee needed more public input before issuing the RFP, but Taub and Ryan felt the plans were far enough along that major changes are not needed. Bockelman stated, “You can’t over communicate,” and encouraged more outreach early. O’Keeffe felt that more robust outreach was needed than either the staff or TSO can handle.
Andy Steinberg suggested consulting staff at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection about what has been successful in municipalities that have switched to competitive bidding on solid waste disposal contracts. He noted that the Massachusetts Municipal Association held a session on the topic at its January 2024 meeting. The presentation noted that trash disposal was often second only to education in municipal budgets. The presentation also stressed that most landfills are at or near capacity. Communities with “pay as you throw” systems generally generate less trash per household that those without that system.
TSO members presented the fundamentals of the new program to the full council at the July 15 meeting and gathered comments and questions from councilors to address at the August 19 council meeting. TSO will spend its July 25 meeting discussing and reconciling the two versions of the bylaw. The bylaw assumes that the transfer station will remain open and be an option to residents who want to opt out of the curbside service.
The new service would be phased in, beginning with single-family homes and duplexes. At the council meeting Pat DeAngelis (District 2) asked about the apparent exemption for subdivisions and neighborhood associations, such as Amherst Woods. Mandi Jo Hanneke (at large) suggested that restaurants and apartment complexes should be encouraged to compost, even if they are not included in the town program. Councilors will submit questions and concerns to TSO. Griesemer said that she already has 14 questions on her list.
I am concerned that designated “kitchen waste bins” might be improperly managed by young adults who are renting in residential neighborhoods resulting in more skunks and raccoons visiting bins . Also odor control could become a problem. I would like the kitchen waste curb side pick up section removed from the bylaw proposal. One of the purposes of the Bylaw is to save money but if we are paying more for wildlife control there is no savings.
I agree with Kathleen about inexperienced renters or even my own young adult children improperly disposing and the property owner being financially responsible. Any fines or penalties should not be a part of this plan. Education yes, penalty no. Also, regarding cost, because I am sharing with a neighbor, our trash bill is $225/year at our curb – no hassle. Anything more cumbersome or expensive will not help us. Sadly, some low income residents don’t have the luxury of of being activists…. Intrusive and expensive bylaws can be more of a problem than a solution at times.
What we have seen in other communities is that there is a learning curve and that it takes a few years of education and encouragement,to get a high level of compliance. But communities do get there, usually without imposing penalties, and the benefits for the environment and for the residents end up being significant.
“ Any fines or penalties should not be a part of this plan. Education yes, penalty no.”
Nine months of education did absolutely nothing for the young entitled adults making our lives a living hell. I realize this is a little different. But there must be consequences these days. The smell and proper disposal with animals that frequent our neighborhoods is a concern. As I mentioned to Darcy, we want the option to continue as is being so close to the landfill. We don’t put food in our trash.
What communities in Massachusetts have successfully implemented curb side kitchen waste pick up? Are they college towns? Just wondering.
Kathleen Carroll, just noting that regardless of curbside compost pick up, the food scraps are in the trash. I have put mine out in the optional USA Waste and Recycling cart for over 6 years and never had a problem with animals knocking it over or getting in. I have figured out that putting it in paper bags works best for me and saving the meat and eggs in the freezer until just before pick up. The town could have lockable carts or containers if they so choose, too.
Putting the compost in a separate cart will reduce the trash considerably so that could be a solution to overflowing trash carts, with bags sticking out. Both students and year round residents will need to be educated. U Mass has a big focus on composting in their dining halls so students will have gotten some of that there. People learn to love this system.
Several towns in eastern MA offer curbside compost pick up and a few are starting to require it. Several states ban organics in the waste stream but not yet MA. California, Oregon, Washington, Vermont. My son just moved to a city that has curbside compost pick up, Takoma Park, Maryland.
Please take a look at the FAQ page on the Zero Waste Amherst website regarding questions about the proposal.https://zerowasteamherst.wixsite.com/home/faq-the-2022-hauler-proposal
We will have to re-educate the bears to stay out of our garbage. As for me, I’m too old to be re-educated and fed up with paying yet more fees and taxes in addition to the three new tires I’ve purchased in the last six years from Amherst’s infamous potholes!
Asking young adults to separate and save and then dispose of their kitchen waste in a responsible fashion is quite a surmountable ask.
So yes..it will end up in regular trash as it is now. Maybe the town could give a one time tax credit to student rental property owners (situated on sewer lines) to install a garbage disposal. Or at least require a garbage disposal be installed when owners apply and or renew their rental permits.
I think young adults could be educated to throw kitchen waste in the sink.
When comparing using the garbage disposal vs. composting, “composting is the clear choice from an environmental perspective.” https://compostcrew.com/garbage-disposal-vs-composting/